Evolution of Power
by AnimeKitty1896
Summary: The Power Puffs are now in middle school, where they make friends with three super powered boys, who irk the Rowdy Ruffs to no end. And the the RRBs get adopted and move to Europe! Talk about a twist. But they return in- Just read... bad at summaries.
1. Chapter 1

AnimeKitty: Yay! First Fan fiction published on a website EVER! It's rated T for future profanity. Hope u like it. If U don't I'll cry. JK…Maybe (laughs as Ion walks in)

Ion: She might really cry…

AnimeKitty: Hey, you! You don't appear until MUCH later! (Chases Ion out of dark room)

PPG: AnimeKitty1896 does not own us or any other featured cartoons. She is just too dumb to-

AnimeKitty: Hey, you three!

DarkKitty (sister of AnimeKitty): Warning- first few chapters will be before the iPod touch debuted.)

-End of Disclaimer-

Chapter 1- Neighboring Genius

Blossom was dreaming of a wonderful garden where everyone was getting along when her father the Professor yelled "GIRLS!"

She was downstairs in a second in her weekend garbs of a pink tank top and denim shorts. She nearly collided with a sweaty Buttercup in the living room. Bubbles came in a moment later, blonde hair in curlers.

"Professor!" Bubbles cried.

"What's wrong?" Blossom asked.

"Where's the fight?" Buttercup demanded, grinding her fists together, causing lime green lightning.

From what Blossom could see, nothing was wrong with the room or their dad. He stood by the doorway. "I want you three to meet…" He opened the door wider. "Professor Hamilton, our new next door neighbor."

In the doorway stood a woman with long brown hair and warm gold eyes framed by black frame glasses. She smiled at them, gently. "Hello," the woman said, her voice light and smoothing. She wore a light yellow sundress with green and white flowers patterning the fabric. On her feet were chunk-heeled white sandals. She looked pretty in an older woman sort of way.

"Hi," Bubbles chirped.

"Hey," Buttercup said.

"Good afternoon." Blossom smiled back.

"Prof. Hamilton and I are old college buds from back in the day." Professor went on. He was grinning from ear to ear. "We used to have so much fun together until she moved to Japan."

Prof. Hamilton shook her head. "Honestly, Professor, you really should just call me Layla. We are going to be neighbors."

"Oh, right…" Professor scratched his head in embarrassment.

"So, I head you had children. That's great, I have a few of my own in middle school. We're getting the furniture just right, in there. And those boys won't let me design their rooms for them anymore." Layla sighed. "Puberty is such a deffening thing."

Blossom hovered by her sister and sized Layla up, covertly. She didn't look evil in the slightest like Professor's other college buddy. And she didn't smell like make-up, as Ima Goodlady had.

Bubbles bumped into her as she tried to hide her hair under her bunny-eared hood.

"I was wondering if you'd all like to come to dinner. My boys are still new here and I'd like them to make good friends." Layla went on, clasping her hands. "And I was hoping to learn how you created such darlings. Not that I'd ever try it! My boys are a handful enough, thank you."

Buttercup muttered something under her breath and Professor shot her a look. "We'd be happy to come over," he replied.

"Perfect, I'll tell Robbie to fire up the stove and get cooking. He's been so anxious to cook a big meal." Layla beamed. "Good-bye, girls. Good-bye, Professor."

"Good-bye, Miss Layla," the girls said in unison.

"Good-bye, Prof- I mean, Layla." Professor smiled.

As soon as Layla left, Buttercup zoomed of muttering something about going downtown.

"We all have dinner dates!" Bubbles cheered. "I can't wait to start putting together outfits. Ooo, maybe a nice pearl green for Buttercup…" She flew upstairs to invade closets in search of the elusive pearl green color.

Blossom remained, hovering by the couch. She made her way to the coffee table where her iPod lay. "I'm going for a fly. Need anything?" A house warming present will be nice, Blossom. I need to find by dinner conversation starter cards."

Blossom cringed. "Will do, Professor." She went upstairs to change.

Chapter 2- Falling Boys, Slime & Criminal Minds

After getting an awesome smoothie from McDonald's (came in around their elementary days), Blossom took a detour through the Townsville Park. People she knew like the talking dog (plus his chatty pair of twins) and the Amoeba Boys, waved at her.

"Hi, guys" she called, slowing to toss Harold's Frisbee back to him. She flew right toward the oldest oak tree in Townsville, that sat conveniently on a huge hill. Bullet the squirrel peeked from the crisp green leaves of the tree. Recognizing Blossom, Bullet scurried toward the branch's edge and flew into her arms, knocking the fourteen year old into a loop.

Blossom giggled girlishly as Bullet raced across her outstretched arms. "Hey, Bullet; fought any hawks lately?" Bullet stopped near her ear and chattered avidly, then continued with her play. "I guess so."

Suddenly, Bullet stopped running altogether to sniff the air, then zinged off to...somewhere in the Townsville Woods by the look of her frantic flying. "Tell Barry I said 'hi,'" she called, referring to Bullet's boyfriend or mate (can't tell with squirrels. They aren't too social.)

Blossom flew over to a high sturdy branch of the tree and sat down. Setting her iPod on the branch, she put on her headphones and turned up the volume to almost 100. She went to Ne-Yo's 'So Sick' and began to sing along.

Rio Hamilton hovered in the thick clouds above Townsville, his new home's, Park. Just as he dodged a zigzagging yellow streak, he heard singing. Not just any singing, though; the most beautiful singing ever. Rio tensed unconsciously, and plummeted toward the ground. He cringed, knowing this world not only hurt but get his mom angry. He wouldn't die from being dropped on his head, but he would ruin his new jeans. Yep, a grounding of epic proportions was in his future. *AnimeKitty1896: Asked him later why he couldn't just start flying again, he said he FORGOT!* *RIO comes in and drags her out of the story room.*

Just before his face met concrete, he stopped. "Seriously, another sky diver," a voice muttered above him. He looked up and saw waves of auburn tapered with gold. Then, he saw her face.

She was cute, with baby pink (hate my mom's idea to take me on her dress-shopping excursion for Aunt Judi's wedding) eyes and peachy cream skin. Her heart-shaped face was slightly marred by a frown on her lips and between her brows. She set him down and landed next to him. She crossed her arms over her chest and blew out a breath of frustration. "Where's your parachute? And your plane?" She tossed her hair and turned away. "Never mind, I just can't today. Where did I leave my iPod?"

He stood up and brushed her grass off his butt. "I wasn't skydiving, I was flying. My name's Rio."

She looked over at him, down at his outstretched hand and then she cracked a smile. He felt heat crawl up his face. "I'm Blossom." She shook his hand. "So you have superpowers too. How did you get the? Alien watch, alien ring, alien protoplasm, government explosion, or a fairy godparent?" She ticked off each on her fingers. Clearly, she knew a lot of people.

"None; me and my brothers were born with them." Rio shoved his hands into his pockets. Was he really chatting up a girl who just saved his butt from being grounded? Yes, he realized, he was.

"Cool, me and my sisters-"

"Blossom, today's the day you let me into the Power puff girls!" a really annoying voice shrieked just before a beam of golden light shot right at them. Rio acted fast and tackled Blossom out of the way. He winced at the pain where the laser had grazed. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"I should be asking you that." She glared up at their assailant. "Princess, you are so dead!"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Buttercup jogged through the downtown neighborhood, while in her ears blared a KISS song twice her age. Her all black Converse beat the pavement in rapid succession.

She threw out punches at the air, her green-taped fists pummeling an unforeseen enemy. She drove home the hits faster than Major Glory (she knew because they'd once again had a little "girls versus boys" contest). She barely panted even after her swift flying endurance drill.

"Stupid dinner date…" she lashed out again, this time breaking a lamp post. Her fist left a perfect imprint in the metal pole. "Stupid neighbors," she added.

She didn't like going to her neighbors' houses. After the Smith family fiasco, she barely liked talking with them. She delivered a roundhouse kick to the metal. "Stupid Bubbles, picking out clothes…taking stupid measurements," Buttercup growled, letting her fists to annihilate the pole.

Breathing harder, she finally continued on her jog, leaving the mutilated pole behind. On the corner, she switched to another rock song.

She came to a full stop by a basketball court. A shirts-versus-skins game was going on, with appreciative teen girls watching three yards or so away. Three sweaty skins chased a calm, younger shirt around until he dunked the ball.

"Nice," Buttercup grinned. "Hey," she called out. "Can I join in?"

Two skins and a sweaty shirt stopped to size her up. "Hey, it's a Power puff," the one in dark grey basketball shorts and a glistening bare chest pointed out.

"It isn't Blossom."

"I think its Butter Tough," the one in dark blue basketball shorts said.

She glared at the shirt-player. "I'm Butter_cup."_

A pasty-faced, freckled player jogged over holding the ball. "I don't know…" His white tee clung to his chest.

"C'mon," she smirked, "I won't even use my powers. First one to five wins."

They all exchanged a look then the one in the red basketball shorts with a shirt- a well toned lean black boy –nodded. "But if we win, we want to meet the others; you know, your sisters."

"Fine; but if I win I get that cap." She jerked her thumb at the green cap seated on top on a white Nike drawstring cap.

"Hey-" Freckles locked eyes with Red-shorts. Finally, he muttered, "Okay… But I definitely get to meet Blossom first when we win."

"Don't get so cocky, Freckles." Buttercup twisted her hair back into a makeshift ponytail with the green hair elastic she kept on her wrist for emergencies. "Let me show you how I throw down…"

Ricky watched as the green eyed, knee-length shorts wearing girl easily evaded TJ's defense. He winced as she slam dunked the ball, causing his new friend's face to sulk.

"Oh, man, I'm on fire baby! That's BC-3, Boys-1," she gloated.

Fizzy muttered, "Great, I'm gonna lose my cap in one game against a _little girl_."

"Man, I'm gonna look sweet in that cap," she grinned, jogging passed Fizzy. She barely spared him a glance.

"How can ten street ballers lose to an elementary school kid?" TJ demanded, as his girlfriend handed him a towel to wipe off his face. He dabbed at his bare chest too.

Buttercup stopped mid-stride, and glared at TJ. "I'm in middle school, you bone head."

TJ rolled his eyes. "My bad."

"And I saved Colby Bryant from being taken by intergalactic bounty hunters. He taught me some moves." She caught the ball as Garret tossed it to her.

"Check it at Ricky," he grumbled. She did, hard. Ricky nearly flew back with the force of it.

As the game went on, BC scored another point. Thankfully, the guys scored two more points and came up to three. As they chased her on the court, Ricky caught up to her just as she leaped to dunk it once again.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw an object come into view; a speeding out of control object. Thinking quick, Ricky tackled her out of the way of the UFO (Unidentified Flailing Object). The UFO cratered the basketball court. Luckily, the other guys managed to dive to safety on the grass.

Buttercup looked up at him with wide disbelieving eyes. "T-thanks…uh…"

"Roc- Ricky, its Ricky…" He pushed up and off of her. "You're welcome."

She nodded once then got up to stomp to the crater. "Okay, whose the wise guy blowing chunks in my- Blossom?"


	3. Chapter 3

*I regret to say that I must show the RRBs in bad light for this. Princess just cannot be a great villainess without using them… They're redeemed later.*

Chapter 3:

Bubbles perused the sewing aisle of the hobby shop. Her basket was already full of threads and sequence; she floated down the aisle, until her phone rang. Pausing, she checked the caller ID. It was Buttercup.

"Hi, Butter-" she started.

"Bubbles, get down here now!" Buttercup barked. She vaguely heard the sound of lasers firing and concrete exploding.

"What's wrong?" Bubbles demanded.

"Princess is here, and she's not alone this time. The Rowdy ruff boys are here for a last hurrah before they go touring Europe." She paused. "Blossom's down."

That was all Bubbles needed to here. She zoomed out of the store, abandoning her would-be purchases and narrowly missing a cute blond kid. "Blossom!"

Robbie watched as the blonde girl who'd been cheerfully shopping moments ago made tracks in the air, panic in her scream. Who was Blossom? He wondered this over as he answered a call from his brother.

"Hey, R-"

"Get downtown, now! Our first days gonna be a brawl of epic proportions," his brother Rio snapped in his ear.

"What?" he demanded. Did this have anything to do with the cutie taking off at the speed of a sonic burst?

"Just use your echo-sonar and find us! We've got a four-on-three showdown here. But it's more like seven-on-three."

Bubbles sonic-screamed, and probably blew Boomer's eardrum. He barely flinched. He just grabbed her legs and slammed her into the pavement. She winced and kicked out of his hold. She spun into a series of kicks, and screamed again, sending him into a nearby building.

She barely missed the acid breath he let out as he flew back. She made a face and tackled him only to end up on her back with Boomer over her holding a huge chunk of pavement. Bubbles used her laser vision to blast it to pebbles that rained on his head. She kicked him off and rolled into furious kicks. The first one was blocked, the second hit his side, and the third and fourth sent him flying into Brick, who was beating up an unconscious Blossom.

She had only a minute to assess the situation now. She knew that much.

Buttercup and some ebony haired guy was tag-teaming Butch, who was strategically blocking their moves and sending off offensive blows himself. Brick was now dueling with an auburn-haired duplicate that was missing the hat. Boomer was currently engaged in a fist fight with his brown haired counterpart. Princess hovered above in a gold, velvet and satin throne with a blinking scepter.

"Hey Brick, finish off that dork and take out Blossom for good!" the freckled fiend snapped, pointing her scepter at Brick. The bulky collar he wore lit up, and Brick took down the duplicate and stalked menacingly toward Blossom's crater.

"Blossom!" she cried, and then had to defend herself against Boomer.

"Blossom!" Buttercup shouted, punching Butch in the gut.

"Bye-bye, Blossom Utonium!" Princess cackled, tossing her orange hair.

"No, bye-bye, Brick!" a familiar voice said. Plasma beams hit Brick square in the back, knocking him down.

From the sky, Ion Mushimo, their young bionic exchange student from Japan, landed by Blossom's side. With his easy strength, the nine year old lifted Blossom into his arm.

"Blossom, are you okay?" he asked.

Blossom winced and opened her eyes. "Took you long enough, Ion. Did you bring what I asked?" she asked.

"Yes, they are with me." He set Blossom to her feet and she faced a recovering Brick.

"It's time to dance, puppet boy." Blossom quickly assessed the situation. And smiled. "Can't get a boy without collaring him first, can you Princess? Bubbles watched as red raced over Princess's face.

Then it dawned on Bubbles. "She's using obedience collars!"

Blossom nodded. "Chemical X-powered collars. And they're weakening. Girls, it's time to show Princess why the Ruffs can't beat the Puffs, no matter what. Ion, the Gloves."

"Right." Ion handed her a pair of black fingerless gloves with a pink cherry blossom on the back. She slipped them on and cracked her knuckles, looking surprisingly a lot like Buttercup.

Bubbles zipped over and grabbed her pair, which were also black, but had a blue bubble on the back. Buttercup dove from her melee to get hers, which were black with green lightning bolts on them.

"Let's show these boys the Spin Cycle."

The Spin Cycle was a draining move they'd developed for tricky situations like this. Using their special abilities, they could surround themselves with their element and attack in the eye of a vicious cyclone.

Blossom went first, fanning the air with ice. As she spun a cocoon around herself, the ice took on a pink tint until it was a pink, swirling blizzard aiming for Brick.

Then, came Buttercup; she clashed her fists together, generating sparks of green electricity. She let it engulf her hands and then stuck them out, beginning her spin of doom's path toward Butch.

Bubbles called on her inner peace with water, them on her sonic scream, energizing the water with explosive blue sound waves. She did a perfect ballet spin and focused on Boomer. It was on.

*Hope you like it. It's kind of a nice double up. I introduced the last of the Hamilton boys and Ion, and I revealed how Blossom got tossed halfway across town.*


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Blossom tackled Brick to the concrete. The pavement was broken and splattered with sweat, and other bodily fluids that Blossom didn't care to analyze. Translation: there was blood, and hacked-up-mucus.

She gripped the bulky, tasteless collar around his neck and held on as he thrashed like a bucking bronco. They tumbled until she ended up on the bottom. Still she held on.

"No use, Blos-som. Those collars are titanium." Princess purred.

Blossom grit her teeth. Letting her rage build, she shot her eye lasers at the control device. The collar broke under pressure. Brick slumped over her, slightly disheveled. His cap fell over her face.

"No! That one was my favorite!" Princess shrieked. "You'll pay Blossom!"

Blossom sighed. She was exhausted and very close to her drop point. No one wanted her to be at her drop point.

Brick shifted. "Buzz-kill?" he murmured.

Blossom frowned. "I am not a buzz-kill. And even if, this buzz-kill saved your life." Her words were muffled his cap. It smelt faintly of spice, but mostly sweat. She wrinkled her nose.

"Butch! Boomer! Get him! Take out Brick! NOW!" Princess screamed. Brick muttered a string of curse words no thirteen year old had a right to know or hear.

*****######*****#####******#######******######******#####*****#####

Brick had a massive head ache, was hatless and holding a Puff down to the concrete—and he had no clue how he got there. He glared at his approaching, zombie-like brothers.

"What's going on, buzz-kill?" he demanded, whipping his hat from over her face. Her pale pink eyes narrowed at him, her rosebud lips pinched in a tight line. "You're on my diaphragm."

He leaned up; then ducked to avoid a sloppy punch from Boomer. His blonde brother spun wildly away. He raised a brow in concern. "That was sissy; even for Boomer. What's going on?"

Blossom looked pained. What the Hell was going down? He rose to his feet, and then helped her to hers roughly. He may have reformed, but he and the Puff leader couldn't be friends instantly.

He spun her out of Butch's clumsy grasp. Well maybe not right now since he was preparing to leave Townsville.

"We have to go aerial." Blossom stated. "The way they're acting right now, it's your best chance."

Brick nodded and silently noted that he needed to pull one final prank on the bossy Puff before he flew to jolly old England. He ascended and expected her to do the same. She didn't. He lowered to hover next to her. "What's wrong Puff? Scared to fly?"

She shot him an unladylike look and hissed out, "I'm too weak." She stared down at the gloves on her hands. Then she sighed. "I was too reckless with my energy management. The Spin takes 50% of my energy then the remaining drains too fast after it…" she mumbled to herself.

His zombie brothers were regrouping. The blonde Puff lay knocked out neck to a sissy-looking brunette boy. The ebony-haired Puff was starting to rise from her crater, her eyes gazing at a steaming crater.

"C'mon!" He hoisted her up, bridal style and flew higher, out of reach. He hovered above view. "So what the hell is going on?"

Blossom fingered design on her gloves. "You and your brothers somehow got collared by Princess, who somehow developed collars infused with chemical X she somehow got a hold of. I managed to break you free but the others… Right now, since its Princess controlling them more that primitive function their capabilities are limited to somewhat below par skills. Basic attacks are functional but any signature moves are now obsolete."

"In English, Miss Brainiac." Brick quipped.

"Princess is controlling your brothers like dolls at a little girl's tea party."

He pondered this. "Can you fight?"

"Any basic superpowers are inaccessible." Blossom stated. The girl was like an android! Did she ever talk like a human?

"So you're powerless?"

"Without a sudden emotional jolt? I'm basically human."

He frowned. "Emotional energy… Like anger, love or happiness?"

"It would have to be a sufficient amount."

He grinned devilishly. Time for a little vengeance. "Pucker up, Buzz-kill."

"I told you-" He cut her off, crushing his lips to hers. She wriggled and squirmed, but he held firm. He pulled away slowly, and licked his lips. "Sweet cupcake… That enough…" His follow up question died as he looked into her eyes.

They were not pink. That was all he could think of. They were a cross between red and orange, like fire.

He accidentally let her go, and winced, expecting her to drop like a stone. Instead, she surged upward and then swerved toward Princess's floating throne. Blossom tackled the hovering idiot with a vengeance.

Brick shrugged and dove back to deal with his zoned out brothers.

He went to Boomer first. The blonde's technique was sloppy at best. Brick easily evaded his poor punches and delivered bullet-fast punches to Boomer's core. "This is for hiding your underwear under my bed."

"Hey, Buzz-Kill!" he called out.

"Busy right now, brainless meat sack." Blossom hissed from over head.

"What turns them back to normal?"

"The collar; rip off the collar!" She dodged Princess's floating lasers and smashed a few. "Use heat vision."

"Got it," He shot the laser beams from his eyes and drew a strain line down the collar's front fasten. He yanked it off his brother's neck and tossed him at Bubbles, who caught him and wriggled her nose in reluctance.

"Now for- whoa!" Brick dodged Butch's less than graceful right hook, and answered with an uppercut. Then her kicked his brother in the gut and bodily threw him on the ground. He tried to reach the collar but Butch struggled harder.

Suddenly, kid-like hands shot out and gripped Butch's shoulders. A current of live electrical power coursed through his brother. He groaned and lay unconscious on the concrete. Brick repeated the procedure for Butch, and tossed the collar to the side. Ion, the kid-android that the Utoniums had taken in for the exchange program, landed beside him. "The most lethal setting I had been in that blast." Ion stated.

"Now, for the queen bee."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

**AnimeKitty: I know this prologue thing is taking long so let me sum up the rest, cuz even I'm annoyed with the long winded thing… here is the scoop:**

_Blossom and Brick, combined their powers and took down Princess, sent her off to juvie… Yadah! Ion got teased by Butch and Boomer for being half-bionic, to which Buttercup and Bubbles argued with. Ion cried and clung to Blossom. Brick got jealous and made a crude comment to make Blossom angry and embarrassed and she slapped him—hard! _

_ She then flew off with Rio following her. Bubbles flew off as well, after Boomer hacked up a mucus ball near her shoes. Buttercup and Butch begin arguing before Blossom called her away. When Butch called her the synonym for "female dog" *ahem*, she punched him in the gut and zoomed off. The remaining Hamilton boys flew off and the Ruffs stared up in shock and anger._

_ Blossom takes Ion home for repairs and diagnostics. After a while they all go eat at the Hamilton household. They meet the boys again and they bond. *Romance is hinted* Ricky is introduced to hockey (plays a vital role later). Robbie and Bubbles bond over cooking. Blossom and Rio discuss Ion's origins while Ion plays with them around the house. Layla and Professor hit it off and plan another date._

_ Meanwhile, Brick tries to call Blossom from the airport. When she doesn't pick up, he leaves a message saying that the Ruffs are leaving town. He hangs up and joins his brothers and their adoptive mother, Gretchen, who promises that once they've made themselves what they wanted to be they'll return to Townsville. Brick stalks off and disappears for a while. Boomer goes for food and Butch tries to pick a fight with a gift-shop-stand owner. _

_ Brick goes to the Utonium household and leaves his signature cap on Blossom's backpack. When he gets back, Boomer comments on where his hat went and Brick says "In the past." And silently adds "With my heart…" _

FLASH JUMP (approx. 3-4years)-

Brick stepped out of the airport and the first thing he did was flash his model smile at the waiting cameras. "Hello again, Townsville," he purred.

Behind him, his brother Boomer blew the crowd a kiss. "Love to all my fans!"

_Always the sweet one, _Brick mused.

Butch stomped out of the plane and shot the camera the rock-n-roll devil horns. "Rock it, Townies."

Brick shook his head messing up his already stylishly-messed-up hair. He really didn't care what the tabloids printed. He had his goal set and his immediate future panned out; and it all revolved around one task: seeing Blossom Utonium. He grinned.

"Look, the leader's smiling!" screamed one fan girl. His smile faded faster than ice cream at a birthday party. He continued on the way to the waiting limo. The driver opened the door and Brick threw in his luggage, and climbed in, followed by his brothers and his mother.

"So, next is the house refurbishments and then some press time for Ruff 'n' Rowdy Jeans. Then, there's the conference with the Indian company for management, and then the Irish potato chips thing…" Brick tuned his mother out with his Sonic-Beats. As he bobbed his head to the sounds of Evanescence, he caught sight of the greatest thing ever: Blossom dancing on the grass hi cut-offs and Timberlands with a red tank top. Red was his color, and he liked the way it looked on his soon-to-be girlfriend.

As the car rolled by, he let the windows descend. To Hell with careful planning; he was a Ruff through and through and he'd was nothing if not impulsive. He flashed a grin in his mother's direction and zipped out of the limo, towards a very in tune Blossom.

It was a normal Saturday for seventeen year old Blossom. The sun was glaring hot and Ion's music system was blazing Euro-hits. The one currently blasting through the speakers was "_Glad you Came_" by The Wanted. And boy did she _want_ to meet them. She swerved her hips left and right as they sang the chorus. Her soon-to-be brother, Rio, (*story in next chapter*) chuckled and sprayed her with the hose. "Wash the car, Wanted-girl." Rio teased.

She smiled and picked up the bucket. "Fi-eeeeen." She found herself whisked away from her school's front lawn and the fundraiser and into the arms of the guy who left Townsville four years ago.

"Brick!" she gasped when he let her down on the rooftop of a building clear across town. "What the-"

He kissed her, for the third time in their lives of knowing each other; he forced a kiss on her. And she couldn't fight it. He drew back after a moment. "Miss me, buzz-kill?" he taunted.

Her face heated. "Why did you- How could you- Ugh!" She brought her bucket down on his head. "That's the third time-!" She stopped herself.

Brick lifted the bucket and glared at her. "What the Hell, pinkie? Did time away from me dull your brain?"

Blossom rolled her eyes at his arrogance. "I was doing something important, Brick-for-brains!" She poked him in the chest. "And you had to go mess with it! Take me back right now, superstar or I-"

"So you know I made it big? I'm pretty impressive, right? The ex-con made it bigger than the goodie-goodie, in the end." He laughed. Blossom felt her temper flare. He laughed _at her_. Not today.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Brick flew to his new home, coincidentally several blocks from the Utonium household. He slammed the door as he entered the three-story home that now belonged to his family.

Boomer met him at the stairs. "So where'd you go- hey!"

Brick shoved his brother out of his way. He really wasn't in the mood. Butch was in the hall, with their pet cats: Spitfire (Brick's), Octave (Boomer's) and Thunder (Butch's). Fire, who had been ignoring Butch's catcalls, instantly perked as his owner stomped into view.

He meowed and sprung up, eager to follow Brick to their new living quarters. Brick didn't spare Fire much of a glance, but the cat didn't seem to mind his surly mood. Brick took the biggest room. It was his right as undisputed leader of the trio. He noted his things, packed into boxes, were already in it.

Heaving a frustrated sigh, he decided to pack out his things. Mustering up enough energy, he started setting up his room.

Spitfire sat in the doorway of his owner's room. He watched as Brick zipped left and right. Then, he let out a kitty-cat sigh and started to groom his fiery red fur.

He caught sight of himself in the mirror and would have purred at how much better he looked now than he had twenty days ago, on the streets of London.

_London._ He hissed at the name of the city. Remembering his former master, a girl who had kicked him out of his home when he hadn't served his purpose, caused his fur to stand on end.

"Hey, Spitfire," Brick called. He looked up at the auburn haired teen that was his master now. "Pick a freaking spot for your bed already, freeloader."

Fire calmed. His master was calmer now. What had even riled him up in the first place? Did it have something to do with the nasty black eye he was sporting? Fire dragged his cat bed over by the king-sized bed that took up his corner.

"Really? Better not meow in your sleep." Brick muttered. Fire sauntered out of the room. His owner may have calmed down, but he was still steaming with anger. It just didn't show. Fire knew. And he would solve the problem; with a little detective work.

Brick watched his cat walk out the front door. Probably to make new subordinates in his new surroundings, he thought. The frisky German Rex was ruthless that way. He went back to his bigger problem

Brick sat back on his bed. "She punched me…" _And in the face, no less_. His sugar fairy had nailed him hard. Did she work out now? He could have sworn he saw stars when her fist collided with his eye. He'd heal but damn if the girl hadn't shocked him out of his boxer-briefs.

He growled low in his throat. What the hell was he doing? Screwing his head over a girl? Even if she was a Puff, with long auburn hair and pale rose eyes… He cursed viciously. "She'll come around." Brick grinned. "After all, I am the hottest guy in the city. Who else is she going to pick over me?"

Blossom flew around the Townsville Country Club's Pavilion. She darted left and right, checking the preparations alongside Rio.

"So the cake is finalized, the orchestra is booked, the flowers are in the process of being arranged, and the ice sculpture is in the subzero freezer…" she checked off.

"The DJ has been booked, the salon is booked, and the dinners are…"

"Finalized. So we are done!" Blossom exclaimed half-heartedly. She smiled at Rio. He smiled back.

Rio was as gorgeous as they came in Townsville. His auburn hair was now sheared to only two-inches, styled in spikes. His green eyes were dreamy perfection, and they only highlighted how hot he was.

Sadly, Blossom wasn't interested. Sure he was smart, caring, funny, reliable, dependable, and really, just perfection guaranteed. But he didn't set her heart racing. He couldn't rile her up, and make her forget herself.

Only one guy did that, and he was a jerk—to the max. And it was better she didn't find herself attracted to him. After all they would be family come next week.

"Cool, then maybe we should head home. We do have that diagnostics test with the professors tomorrow…Where they check our power levels… Gonna be a long day." Rio chuckled. Even his voice was dreamy. But, again, Blossom wasn't interested, in the least.

They flew home, chatting about their AP Statistics class, the volleyball team's upcoming trip to the beach and Ion's upcoming return.

"You think Dr. Mushimo fixed that power problem?" she conversed.

"Hope so; Ion's really excited about the sports fair. It'd be a shame if he couldn't participate." Rio murmured. He dipped into his pocket to check his cell phone. "It's six-forty-nine; we have an hour to set up his welcome back party."

Blossom grinned. "Motor oil cake?"

Rio nodded. "Motor oil cake."

Isis prowled around the confines of her cell. She slashed violently at the metal door, leaving another set of deep gashes in the titanium door. Hissing, she retreated to the corner.

Moments later the door opened and an orange haired teen stood in the doorway. The freckled, rude girl smirked. "Ready to bow to your Princess?"

AnimeKitty: A lot of you may not get Spitfire's significane, or Isis', given she belongs to Princess, but look out for the next chapter, also… Blossom DOES work out. Go gym!


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

AnimeKitty: Yeah! Summer is here! Hello, my loyal fans… and Carl.

Carl: Hi, Kitty…

AnimeKitty: It's _Anime_Kitty. There's a difference.

Carl: Whatever, Sh-

AnimeKitty: Carl! Shut it! Anyways… As a special End-of-School treat for all, I have… 2 new chapters.

Chapter 7:

Blossom threw her arms around a twelve year old Ion and squeezed him as tight as his titanium alloy-enhanced skin could handle. "Welcome back, Ion," she sighed.

Ion good-naturedly let her cuddle him. "Thanks, Bloss."

BC smirked at him. "Only Blossom gets thanks? We decorated the room."

Ion blushed, his slightly freckled cheeks—a feature he recently found he could turn on and off at will—reddening with embarrassment.

Blossom jumped to his defense. "Well maybe you'd get a thanks too, if you didn't start boxing matches with the first able-bodied—(insert genius synonym for human here)—that clamors through the door." She mockingly glared down her sister.

BC huffed out a frustrated breath. "Just sayin'…"

Bubbles intervened. "ANYWAYS… It's great to have you back, Ion. You really like family around here. Who am I kidding, you are family!" She hugged him as well.

Ion smiled and looked around at the gathered Hamilton-Utonium households. Layla Hamilton smiled from her perch by Professor Utonium's side on the couch. Robbie was leaning near the assorted desserts' table, and shot him a grin. Ricky was in front of the TV, clicking away at his favorite video game—Mortal Puppet Pal Kombat 5. Rio was talking on the phone to his (Ion's) father, Professor Mushimo.

It was hard to believe he'd only met the Utonium family six years ago. He fit in so much better in America than he had back home in Tokyo, with all the other android-humans at Livewire Academy (translated for your benefit).

The first one to accept him fully had been Blossom. And then she'd proceeded to show him "Humanity". Technically, he was 36% human, 25% Cybertronian, 4% Martian, and 35% XJ-series parts (meaning like XJ-9 and her sisters). But he'd been raised all his life as one of the advancements in technology, which his father readily rectified when Ion had pointed it out on his schematics.

And off he'd been sent, traveling by private currier to the Utonium house.

Ion beamed at Blossom as she teased BC. So pretty… He hadn't had much basic skill with females before he came here—in human terms, he'd be an unlucky nerd who could get any girl to take two minutes to show him the way to a bathroom! He guessed his cerebral cortex had identified Blossom as a primary hormonal trigger to his underdeveloped human psyche. In other words, he had a major crush on Blossom.

"…And your day couldn't have been that bad, Buttercup. Guess who I saw today." Bubbles chimed in. "I saw Boomer! In the craft shop."

Blossom nodded. "And I got manhandled by Brick." She looked guilty of something; what, he didn't know.

BC huffed, "So we all met them. Stupid rock head cornered me in the gym." Ion guessed they were talking about the Ruff brothers. He'd heard they'd made it big as a boy band first, and then as clothing models. They weren't as hot as they had been last year but the XJ-9 had asked him to get an autograph next time he was them.

"Well, I gave Boomer a piece of my mind!" Bubbles stated.

"I threatened to kick Butchie-boy in the face if he messed with me!" BC gloated. "I couldn't then cuz I was carrying Ion's party supplies."

Blossom's gaze shifted to the ceiling. "Well… I kind of confronted Brick in a way, too…"

BC sneered. "Did you threaten to make him read the US law against kidnapping five times?"

"No…"

"Did you give him a lecture on how to properly greet someone?"

"No…"

"Did you wave your fairy princess mane in front of his face and make him go gaga over you?" That was a jab.

"No-"

"Then what did you do Miss Prim-&-Proper?"

"I socked him in the eye!" blurted Blossom. "He was laughing about what happened all those years ago, and I just couldn't control it and I… punched him."

Everything fell silent for a minute. Then BC started laughing. "She punched him! She actually hit someone who did instigate it first! This is rich!"

Without another word to anyone, other than a generic bye, Blossom zipped upstairs. Seconds later, they all heard a room door slam. All eyes turned to BC.

She sheepishly shrugged. "What?"

Meanwhile Brick was out looking for Spitfire. The mangy ball of fur was bound to stir up trouble. He flew slowly through the night, careful not be seen, annoyed with the paparazzi attempts at getting dirt on him.

He steered himself into the old Pokey Oaks kindergarten playground. It had been abandoned in favor of the new playground where the monkey bars didn't groan when a feather landed on them and swings that retained more rainwater and spit it out if you so much as looked at it cross-eyed.

But even rusted, busted up and dented, it held the one allure the new one didn't: he and Blossom had secretly played here together.

_ The time of year was spring, and Brick was physically seven, biologically two. He sat on the swings the swings, staring up at the starry sky. _

_ "Man, those diamonds are awesome! What I would give to steal one of those… Probably feed us for the rest of our lives- if those two idiots don't blow it all on snort rocket guide books."_ _He laughed at his own pathetic joke._

_ "Those aren't diamond; they're stars," know-it-all voice informed him._

_ Brick instantly went on the offensive. "I say they're diamonds!" He twisted his hat behind him, like he'd seen some cartoon guy on TV—Ashy Ketchup, or something—do and frowned. "And what I say goes._

_ Blossom floated to stand in front of him. "Philosophers have already named them, Brick-head; and if you grabbed hold of one of those 'diamonds'—which is doubtful because they're bigger than earth—you'd be swallowed by a blazing inferno."_

_ Brick grunted and resumed his seat. "So what? You're out patrolling? Gonna take me in?"_

_ Blossom took the seat beside him. "Actually I was reading..." It was then that Brick noticed the navy blue book with silver sparkly stars on the visible spine. "This is my favorite book on astrology and the cosmos, written by Dr. Winfred Hamilton."_

_ "Cool, does it have any action? Gore scenes? Suction cup thingies that feed on life?" Brick's interest was piqued. _

_ Blossom shook her head, long auburn strands wafting under his nose. "It's a book on how to identify stars and constellations."_

_ "Constipation? Why would you want to identify that?"_

_ "_Constellations_, Brick; they're pictures made by the stars' alignments. Like that one…" She pointed up, toward some stars._

_ "That one's the big dipper. It's shaped like a spoon." Blossom traced out something in the air. He shot her a puzzled look. _

_ She frowned. "Hold on a second!" She pushed her huge book into his hands and stood. She took off for the sky, pink light behind her. She flew in a weird shape that only made sense when she connected the last lines. _

_ "Oh!" It piqued his interest. When she landed, he bombarded her with questions. "Cool! Is there a trick to it? Some kind of formation to them?"_

_ She shook her head. "You just have to be interested in them enough and look out for information on them."_

_ He looked down at the book in his hands. Suddenly, it held the key to the end of his boredom. "Can you—you know—teach me this stuff? It's not that I'm interested or anything! But if you interested enough I can sit through your-"_

_ Blossom tapped the hard cover of the book. "You can keep that if you want. I have others at home."_

_ Brick bristled. "I won't take hand-me-down stuff, Pinkie."_

_ Blossom smiled wryly. "Consider it a gift. And maybe, one day, when you turn good, I'll give you the rest of the series."_

_ Brick grinned. "Unlikely; show me more! Like…" He flipped through his new book and found one that looked cool. "This!"_

_ Blossom smiled. "Sure!"_

_ And they spent an hour going through the constellations. Brick felt his love for the cosmic diamonds growing with each pink tracing Blossom showed him in the sky._

Present day Brick leaned against the chain-link fence separating the two playgrounds. He watched as Spitfire emerged from beneath a tossed aside empty garbage bag.

"There you are." Brick unceremoniously declared. He scooped up the cat and bonked it on the head lightly. "Let's go, trouble-maker. This place has too many memories for me." As he turned to leave, he saw her standing there.

"Are they all bad? Or are some of them good?" Blossom asked a tentative smile on her lips and his old red hat in her hands. "Welcome back, Brick."

Despite everything—the black eye, the screaming, the harsh complicated words she'd thrown at him in parting that he'd looked up on (some were more R rated than he thought she had in her)—he smiled back. "Hey, Buzz-kill, come to take me in, or stare at the constellations?"


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

AnimeKitty: Here's the second one! Oh, I love summer… Carl, what are you still doing here?

Carl: Annoying you…

AnimeKitty: Arg! Let's get on with it. Ion, if you will?

Ion: Let chapter eight begin.

Isis dashed into the closest alleyway, fur streaked with blood. She didn't dare lick it off. It was a waste of time if they caught her.

She instead crouched low behind a trash can lid. Heavy footfalls passed and the humans shouted orders. She slowly crawled deeper into the stinky narrow passage way until she encountered other cats.

They circled her, claws brandished in offense. She sat completely still, until a presumptuous brown tabby tried to touch her tail. She swatted the male cat away indignantly. "Don't touch!" she mewed.

"You're an outsider, aren't you?" a white tabby with light brown stripes on his back hissed.

"So?" Isis huffed, turning away.

"Outsiders aren't welcome in our alleyway. Leave."

"I will." Isis turned to stalk away, but met a female Persian who looked like she hadn't been fed in months.

"Leave without the pretty collar, kid." The Persian made a swipe for it. For some reason, Isis leaped back. She didn't know why she didn't just leave it, seeing as it labeled her Princess's property.

"So you're gonna do this the hard way? Fine, pretty kitty, we'll play it your way." The Persian pounced and as soon as Isis threw her off her back, two more female cats encircled her tightly, leering at the gaudy gold-and-ruby collar with sapphire inlays.

Isis felt the white tabby's eyes watching her. His heterochromic eyes (one green, the other blue) tracked her every move.

And as the two Siamese cat sisters jumped at Isis, she felt herself come to one conclusion: she had to fight them all to get out now.

Brick smiled as Blossom completed the seven constellation. "Nice. Now try…" He wracked his brain.

"Are you gonna make me trace all the constellations out all night?" she demanded.

"It's payback for the black eye. Deal, Pinkie."

"Don't call me Pinkie." Blossom sighed. "How about I trace the Orpheus Spectrum?"

Brick's ears perked at the sound of the constellation he'd created. It was an Owl that held the Big Dipper, the Little Dipper, Aquarius and the Archer. But what really made it unique was the Milky Way. It had to have the cosmic trail of stars or it wouldn't be a Spectrum.

"We'd need a brighter spot. Or we could wait until the new moon tomorrow night."

Blossom frowned. "So, no O.S.?"

"Well, we could come out tomorrow…" he let his thought trail off, certain he couldn't be more specific.

Seconds that felt like hours ticked by. Finally, she said, "Are you asking me out?"

"Yeah," came his immediate reply.

She smiled and opened her mouth to reply when a screech caught their ears. "A banshee?" she gaped.

"Worse; a cat fight. And it sounds deadly." Blossom took off before he finished the last sentence.

"Let's go."

Scooping up Fire, he took off after her. "This is why I tell you never to fall in love, Fire. Girls get sidetracked by the slightest thing."

Isis leaped over a grey tabby with green eyes. She ducked a side swipe by an American shorthair. Her stamina was low. Her vision was slightly blurred by the blood that caked her face. Just when she was sure she would fall, gentle hands scooped her up.

Cats hissed around her and slowly retreated, except the white tabby. He pounced, only to meet a fiery orange cat with sharp green eyes. They struggled for a bit before the orange cat delivered the final slash. The white tabby fell back and met the triumphant gaze of the orange cat.

As they all turned to leave, Isis noticed her neck was bare. She dimly spotted the scrawny Persian with it, pulling it away with the two Siamese sisters. It felt like a great weight had been lifted of her chest. Numbly, she relaxed into the rescuer's arms and looked up to see a girl with auburn hair peering at her, concerned.

"Are you okay? Oh, you covered in blood; and so skinny!" Isis was sure her savior would toss her down now. No one wanted a scrawny, beaten up cat.

"I'll take you home and clean you up. Poor baby…" her rescuer cooed. "Hey, Brick, what type do you think she is?"

Another red-head came into view. Isis recognized him from the posters in Princess's room. Brick from the ex-boy band Ruff Stuff.

He frowned. "Don't know. But I can take her home with me. We've got lots of cats at home. One more won't make a difference." He shrugged nonchalantly and reached for her.

"No way, I'll keep her. I'm Professor won't mind. Besides, I think she needs some medical care in private. Not surrounded by male cats that have one thing on their mind."

"How do you know it's a she and that we have all male cats?"

"You're not the type to pamper a girl cat. And she's a little too pretty to be a boy. Let's go. I'll get you all cleaned up, okay, baby. Don't worry."

The next day, Isis awoke in a lab. But it was different than the one at Princess's house. This one felt…safe.

She tried to stand and saw she could. Free movement in a lab was a first. She padded around the room, quiet as to not disturb the sleeping professor at the table. He murmured something in his sleep about wedding rings and nuclear atomic rings.

Finally she came to the door. Just as she was about to throw herself at it, the door swung open. "Professor, is she- oh, hi, sweetie." Her rescuer from the night before knelt to her level and scooped her up. And oddly enough, Isis didn't feel the need to wriggle free.

"Let's get you some food. You must be hungry." Isis let herself be carried around the unfamiliar place and into an unfamiliar kitchen. She was set down on a pillow on the floor. It smelled clean and fresh, like it was brand new.

"Here you go," A plate of smoked salmon with sautéed mushrooms and baby carrots appeared before her. "It's a Robbie special. We can go out and buy you something else if you want?"

Isis didn't complain. The salmon was delicious and the mushrooms tasted like cod. But she didn't touch the carrots. What self-respecting cat ate carrots like a bunny?

"Did you like it?" Her savior slid a bowl of water in front of her, which she greedily lapped up. It was so cool going down her throat.

Isis mewled and snuggled into the girl's palm.

"I'm thinking we should give you a name. My name's Blossom, by the way. Not that you care, huh, sweetheart?"

Isis froze. Blossom? The same Blossom that made Princess act meaner every day? Isis slowly pulled out of the euphoria that had surrounded her.

"Hey, what's wrong, sweetie?" Blossom cooed. "You're shivering. I guess it's time for a proper nap huh?"

Isis let her scoop her up and take her to a rosy-walled room. She was set down on a big bed, with rosy red sheets. "Here, use my room. I'll be back in an hour. I just have some errands to run."

Minutes after she'd left, Isis curled up and thought. If Princess knew she was in the house of her enemy she'd… She'd what? Isis realized she was safe from Princess and her tortuous ways. She was free of the cold room with nothing but a litter box. She was liberated from the endless testing and prodding Princess put her through to make the "perfect" cat. She could do whatever she wanted now! Without that gaudy collar, she was no longer Princess's cat. She wasn't even Isis anymore.

And her first order of business as a new cat was a long, well-deserved nap on Blossom's bed.

AnimeKitty: Yay! Two new chapters for summer. Ion's past was touched on. Brick's relationship with Blossom was expanded on. And I got to give my readers what they wanted. Hurray for summer! Carl, don't come back tomorrow.

Carl: I'm totally coming back tomorrow! Yay, summer!


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

AnimeKitty: I got rid of Carl! *Theatric clapping* Ah… Now for Chapter 9. Ion, my favorite bionic boy, if you will…

Ion: Powerpuff Girls is not owned by AnimeKitty. She simply types the fan fiction she wishes to. Now, onward with the chapter. Hey, when can my past be expanded on.

Carl: *appearing behind Ion* Never. You will forever be a floating existence in—

AnimeKitty: Security! Enjoy…

Brick frowned as he followed behind Blossom. She picked up an assortment of pet supplies in the Pet Mart. She beamed at the collar she'd chosen for that cat she'd picked up the night before.

"I really do think black is the way to go with her fur shade." Blossom gushed.

Brick found himself slightly envious of the nameless cat. "Just pick one already…" he mumbled.

Blossom paid him no mind. She carried her items over to the counter. "Excuse me, but do you have a prettier collar in black?" she asked the cashier who looked like he'd been hit with an extra dose of pimples.

The cashier—his name tag read Leslie, the poor sap—fumbled and came up with black collar from which dangled a red-and-pink rhinestone studded metal heart. It was the size of a baby's fist, and while it didn't scream "perfect" to Brick, it was obviously perfect for Blossom.

"That's perfect. Can you engrave something on the back? Like, 'For my beloved cat, Luna'?" she asked.

Dumbly, Leslie nodded vigorously. "I-I can have it ready for you by four this afternoon, if you want…" The dork was smitten. And Blossom was oblivious. Brick sighed. This did not bode well for his plans at romancing her.

"That would be great! Thank you… Leslie." Blossom smiled at the pimpled dork, ensnaring him in her rosy-cheeked smile and pale rose eyes. She'd just unwittingly ruined the boy's life and brightened his day by ensuring he'd fallen in love with her.

Blossom paid for everything else: cat shampoo, 'Caring for Cats' manual, cat bed, and a cat bowl. She handed them to him to carry and he mumbled about it. And as they left the store, he shot Leslie a pitying look. The poor fool was now a Blossom fan with no hope of gaining notary.

"Brick, now we head to the bookstore!" Blossom called. He smirked. This was what couples did. And he mentally logged this as the first in many shopping expeditions. Then he groaned. He'd have to go _shopping_.

Bubbles floated past her sister's room and came to a sudden stop in front of the door. A slate grey kitten with blackish-brown mottled into its fur was curled up on Blossom's bed.

"A kitten!" she squealed. Was that what Blossom brought home last night when she'd rushed into Professor's lab?

The paw that Bubbles could see was bandaged and being favored even in sleep. Its ears flickered and Bubbles fell even deeper in love with it. "Oh, I hope she's planning on keeping it…"

Bubbles gasped as she remembered her own pet kitten, asleep in her bedding. "I bet Snow would love to meet her new friend… And maybe Razz, too." She thought of BC's pet cat.

She zipped off to get Snow and Razz. "Oh, that kitten's going to feel so at home…" Just then, she heard a knock at the door. Then, BC shouted up, "Bubbles, your counterpart's here."

Bubbles paled. "Oh, fudge muffins…" She floated down the stairs to face Boomer.

Snow shook herself awake and purred as looked around the baby blue room. She preened her snow white fur and padded out the door to find her owner. Bubbles should have tickled her out of bed ages ago.

As she padded past her owner's sister's room, she paused. A cat lay on the rosy red bedspread, mewling in her sleep slightly. A new kitten? Razz was going to love this.

"What's up, whitey?" Razz snickered, coming up.

_Well, speak of the devil-kitty… _"Apparently, Blossom got a new kitten." Snow informed her friend and adoptive sister.

"Cool, little Red's joining the kitty-fold." Razz mused.

Just then, that kitten yawned and stretched, waking up. She opened her eyes a crack, revealing a startling violet pair of eyes. "I must be dreaming to be back in this situation…" the kitten murmured.

Snow padded forward, diplomatic as usual. "Hi, I'm Snow, and welcome to the Utonium house."

Razz followed. "The name's Razz; as in, raspberry. But it's just Razz."

The kitten cocked its head to one side and the flopped down and curled up, facing away from them. "I'm not interested in joining a gang, a club or a sorority," she listed.

Snow beamed. "Great; then how about a sisterhood? Me and Razz are the only other cats in the house and-"

That got the cat up and her fur on end. Without a warning, she was in Snow's face, violet eyes flashing with anger and resentment. "I am not joining anything. Beat it."

Razz stepped in. "Sorry, precious, we've got seniority around these parts." Her jade green eyes narrowed. "We don't have to go anywhere."

The cat backed away from them and started to go around. But when she reached the door, she retracted her claws and swiped at the wood. "Stay out of my way. You've been warned." Once the cat left, Snow studied the deep gash she'd left in the door. It was unnatural for a cat to slice through four inch thick wood with just one swipe.

Blossom practically skipped home with Brick following behind, teasing her about her skipping no doubt. She did a quick twirl and waved to Robin as she walked her pet Labrador, Chocolate, she'd gotten for Christmas.

"So, about tonight…" Brick began.

Blossom felt heat creep up her neck. "Oh… Yeah…" She bit her lower lip.

"I was thinking dinner at a restaurant then a movie, and then we head to the park for the constellations." Brick went on. "I'll pick you up at six."

Blossom shook her head. "Still as pushy and bullhead as a bovine on enhancements, I see. Yeah, six will be great."

He smirked. "You like that about me. I get straight to the point. No wagers, no hedging. I'm a straight-forward kind of guy."

Blossom smiled. "Well, thanks for coming with me as I did all my errands; especially dropping off my letter to Avett. That postal worker with the lazy eye still creeps me out."

Brick smirked. "He can't bite."

They finally reached her house. "In two hours I can pick up Luna's collar. I wonder if she'll like the name…and if she'll get along with Snow and Razz."

When Brick raised a brow, Blossom hastened to explain. "Bubbles and Buttercup got cats for Christmas two years ago. I hope she gets along with them."

Blossom opened the door and came face to face with Rio. He smiled. "Hey, I was just about to go looking for you. Professor needs you in the lab to talk about the cat's diagnostic scans. It's some pretty weird stuff."

Blossom sighed. "I hope it isn't too drastic. That poor kitty… Could you set all this up for me, Rio?" she pleaded with her soon-to-be brother.

Rio shot her a grin. "That's doable. And the Ruff?"

Blossom's face heated. "H-he's okay…" She hovered on the threshold. "I'd better get go."

AnimeKitty: Ah, the plot thickens. Luna's got a 'tude, Brick and Rio have now formally met and I just invented a Blossom fan club. Isn't life lovely?

Carl: *Wrapped in chains and glued to a gigantic firecracker* No.

AnimeKitty: Tough cookies, pest. Launch one! *Presses button* Please review!


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Buttercup watched in disgust and perverse pride as her "date" wolfed down everything in front of him but the plates. But even they were in danger of being sucked into Butch's mouth and crunched into ceramic dust.

"Can you chew?" she asked in disgust.

He turned laser green eyes toward her and winked. "Only when I'm at one of those fancy restaurants. Brick is anal about it."

"And look what it got him; a date with Blossom."

"A better reason for me to stick to eating like this. Blossom's not my type."

BC growled at him and shoved her food far from her. "I can't believe Mitch cancelled on me…"

Butch snickered. "Hey, you said you wanted to check out the food here. Who cares who you're with? Though, if we ditch the stiffs, we could have more fun…" He waggled his eyebrows and smugly smiled.

Could she choke him? She decided not. His brain didn't need oxygen, judging by the lack of breathes he was taking between bites. Or rather, inhalations.

BC looked over at Ricky, who was playing DDR-Samba Edition with his date, Maria Estate, a Hispanic girl who clearly ruled the dance floor if her score was anything to go by.

BC sighed and resigned herself to try and enjoy the new burger joint. Maybe she could throttle Mitch later.

Bubbles teared up as the couple on the screen spoke their vows to each other. "Aw…" she sighed.

Robbie dipped into her popcorn bag and extracted a fistful, he slowly ate it, his gaze shifting from the screen to Boomer—who had asked her to come to the new movie screening as his date—and then to the young female lead who sat tucked into Robbie's side.

"_I always loved you, Terrence, I never stopped…_" Julia choked, tears coasting down her cheeks.

"_I wish I'd known that sooner, Julia. I would have flown here sooner._" Terrence crooned back.

Bubbles released an envious sigh. "I wish I had a boyfriend like him… He's so dreamy and sensitive…" She pointedly stared at Boomer, who frowned.

"I can be sensitive too." Boomer defended, then burped. "Sorry…" he sheepishly said.

Bubbles sighed, looking up at the dreamy, hunky guy that was Dirk Douglas Davidson. Then she looked enviously at Regina Taylor. "You're so lucky so got to act with him!" she whispered.

Regina waved it off burrowing closer into Robbie's side. "He was jerk off-screen. Nothing like Robbie…"

And thus the kissing ensued again and Regina and Robbie were playing tonsil hokey with buttery lips as the film premiere rolled on.

Bubbles sighed. "I wish I had a boyfriend…"

Ion waited for the girls to return anxiously from their dates, as well as for Rio to return from his Malaysian detour to stop a few activists who were threatening a small village.

Finally, the front door opened and in came Blossom and Brick. Brick had his arm around Bloss's shoulders like he had the right. And by the way Bloss was slightly leaning into the Ruff's side, he did. He took it their late night date went well.

Next were Butch and BC. BC flew in, her jeans and t-shirt covered in paintball splatter. She didn't seem to mind, however, and high-fived Butch and snickered as Ricky and Maria walked in wearing slightly miffed expressions.

"…and the way you shot Maria Matrix-style was wicked sweet! Man, you're awesome, BC!" Butch grinned.

Instead of punching the green Ruff for using her much hated nickname, she blushed slightly and replied, "You're not so bad yourself, sharpshooter."

"Get a room!" Brick suggested to the pair.

"You don't you!" Butch replied.

"Good idea; but Blossom doesn't want to," the red Ruff smirked. Blossom punched him in the chest, her face pink. "What? It's true; I asked you-"

"Just shut up!" Blossom cried. She turned her back to him and folded her arms across her chest.

"Aw, Blossom…" Brick whined.

Finally, Bubbles, Robbie, Boomer and the famous teen starlet Regina Taylor, from the Prism Moon-werewolf movie series and the new teen romantic-comedy/spy thriller _Fly by Spy, _strolled through the door. Bubbles and Boomer were holding hands, and Ion couldn't tell who was redder at the moment.

Robbie led Regina to the couch and then dashed off to the kitchen, coming back with a fat piece of chocolate cake from Ion's welcome back party. Regina gasped as Robbie produced a fork and sat down, proceeding to feed Regina delicate slivers of chocolate heaven he'd concocted himself, from scratch.

Ion sighed in relief, glad the dates had gone well, but a little resigned. He was the odd one out. Then, Rio arrived. He came in toting a suitcase. "I'm back, with gifts from Rome."

Bloss, BC, and Bubbles zoomed over to Rio, like he was Santa Claus.

"A Milan purse?" Bubbles demanded.

"A Gladiator helmet?" BC guessed.

"A Historical artifact from the Roman Republic?" Bloss asked.

"Yes, yes and sort of… I only got Roman Empire things." He relinquished the suitcase, and BC swept it up.

Bloss gave Rio a peck on the cheek. "You are a king."

Bubbles hugged Rio around his middle. "I love you so much!"

BC smirked. "I won't punch you."

Luna watched as her new owner arranged her newly acquired artifacts on the wall. She mused at her new name. _Luna… _

"Like moon. You remind me of an old cat I used to read about. She had a lot of spunk." Blossom had said, as she'd fastened the collar on to her.

Blossom suddenly picked Luna up. She mewed in distress at losing her cushiony position on her new cat bed that Rio had set up. It was a deluxe, downy bed with little crescents decorating the outside fabric.

"Oh, Luna, I've never been so jubilant in my entire existence! I have a boyfriend, my dream pet and Roman Empire artifacts. I hope this never ends!" Blossom gushed. Her joy was contagious.

Luna licked Blossom's cheek, unafraid of showing her new owner affection when it was rightly earned.

Blossom giggled. "Stop it; that tickles." She set Luna down on her bed and pondered her. "You know, I may just jinx it but nothing could ruin this for me."

Luna meowed her approval. _I won't let anything ruin it either._ She settled into her bed as Blossom left. "I'll be right back, Luna. Sleep tight."

As Luna began to drift off, she heard a tapping on the widow. Lifting her head, she hissed as she met the hetechromic eyes of the boss cat from the alley. He grinned at her evilly and the dropped, disappearing from sight. Luna shivered. Now something was threatening her peaceful new life.

Princess Morebucks slammed her fist down on the table, frightening her servants. "What do you mean that wasn't the cat?"

The wimpy agent she'd sent to retrieve her cat from the pound flinched visibly. He whimpered audibly too. "I-It wasn't the Egyptian Mau… It was a Persian long hair. And one in terrible shape."

"Bring it here. We're going to try the new cat tongue serum on it and make it cough up where my Isis went!"

The wimpy middle-aged man bent lowly and scampered off to do her bidding. Princess scoffed and bit her thump in anger. "You just can't find _good_ evil help these days…"

AnimeKitty: Weee… The boss cat is back by unpopular demand—trying to pacify Carl so he leaves me alone. So, I hope you all like it and review… Brick and Blossom forever!


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Spitfire watched as Luna the cat clawed the bedspread beneath her. She was anxious, if she'd called all the cats together. They were now waiting for Snow, Razz, and Thunder to appear.

She was itching to tell them something. And he guessed it was big. She'd gone off a week ago, and Blossom had been a wreck searching for her. And by social bond, Brick had been a wreck caring for Blossom. And he still was, what with her sneezing and all. She was in the lab, down with the super-flu.

Finally the stragglers arrived. "We were paying respects to Blossom." Razz said, pointedly glaring at Luna. Luna flinched visibly, but then stiffened her spine.

"Once you hear what I have to say, you'll wish I never came back." Luna promised. "Is that all of them, Spitfire?"

He jolted when she said his name. He wasn't attracted per say to the Egyptian Mau, but he had to respect her moxie. Walking head long into a den of cats than hate her guts was brave; stupid, but admittedly brave. He nodded.

"Okay then… Most of you ate me for leaving. A lot of you want to know why I'd leave a warm home with people who love and pamper me to the fullest extent. Well… That's because I'm not a normal stray. Or even a stray for that matter…" She padded to a human book that was propped up on the pillows. She nudged it off until it fell on the cherry blossom print rug, and onto a page that made Snow and Razz hiss with fury, and Thunder and Octave back away.

It was the elementary school photo of Princess Morebucks. She had a full page spread, because her father had bought it for her while vacationing in the Bahamas. He'd heard the story from Boomer and Butch, and also heard how the Power Puffs and the Rowdy Ruffs had gotten a page too. _Most likely couples in the future_. Brick and Blossom, Butch and BC, and Boomer and Bubbles; he wondered if the school yearbook club was prophetic.

Luna grimaced. "That was my owner before Blossom, or should I say, my captor."

Snow was the first to speak. "Why did you run away? You know, other than princess being more evil than a junkyard raccoon who hasn't eaten in weeks and just lost his sardine bones to a-"

"Snow!" Razz growled. "Why?"

Luna leaped off the bed and landed on Princess's face. "Because Princess not only abused her right as owner; she stole me from an old woman."

_The night air was cold, and a young Luna, not yet named Luna, instead named Cleopatra, was snuggled into the afghan of her owner, old Mrs. Higgins. _

_ Cleo was a kitten and loved being kept cozy in Mrs. Higgins' afghan as she walked the streets of Townsville to find other alley cats. She loved to give them a place to come to when they were injured or alone. _

_ This night was colder than an autumn night was supposed to be. "Dear me, Cleo, this cold weather has me a little beside myself. Perhaps we should get home, and come back in the morning. It feels like December's blown in too soon." _

_Cleo mewed in agreement. She couldn't wait to get home and snuggle into her warm bed, next to her brothers and sisters. And Silver, Mrs. Higgins' favorite little misfit kitten. He always told the best stories, and she had a blast lying next to him. He never went to sleep right away; and he told her stories about the alleyways he'd slept in._

_ As they rounded the corner and came upon their gated home, they came upon a limo sitting there in front. Mrs. Higgins paused then walked up. "Hello?"she started. The door swung open without preamble and out came a butler with a fur coat loosely over his arm. He did an about face and held out a gloved-white hand to help out a red-orange haired preteen with braces. She was dressed in an ice blue sweater vest and a navy blue pleated skirt with black Mary-Jane's over white stockings. She made Cleo shiver._

_ "Hey, lady, I heard you have the best cats in Townsville. I want one."_

_ Mrs. Higgins hugged Cleo close. "I'm afraid you'll have to come back tomorrow. I must be getting inside. Or Mr. Higgins will think I've wandered off again."_

_ The girl smiled evilly, like a cat that had cornered a mouse. "Ah, yes, Mr. Higgins… He needs a heart transplant, right? To keep him out of the red zone, if I'm correct."She stepped closer. "I can get him thrown further down the list with one phone call, granny. Show me the cats."_

_ Cleo watched from afar as the girl scoffed at each and every kitten and cat Mrs. Higgins showed her. _

_ "Too scrawny."_

_ "Too fat."_

_ "Not enough life."_

_ "Too much bounce."_

_ "I want a shorthair!"_

_ "I want a longhair!"_

_ "This one smells like cat!"_

_ The girl shot down each feline. Finally, she screamed. "Is that all you have? What a lame-o bunch of cats. I knew I should have had daddy handle this. Your husband can forget about getting a heart in this lifetime!"_

_ Mrs. Higgins tried to plead with her. "You can't! He's so sick-"_

_ "Then he isn't worth a heart. Let's go, Jeffries." _

_ Cleo dashed to Mrs. Higgins side, catching the girl's eye. She rubbed herself against the old woman's leg assuring her everything would be okay. Suddenly, pinching hands grabbed Cleo's little body. "I'll take this one. Jeffries, pay her."_

_ "No, not my Cleo! She's a gift from my son! He's gone now! Please, anyone but her—you can't!"_

_ "Do you know who I am? I'm Princess! I can do and take whatever I want."She jerked Cleo around to show Mrs. Higgins. "And I want this one."_

_ With that, Princess stalked out of the house with Cleo under arm. Cleo bit and struggled. But it was no use. She was trapped. Princess threw her into the limo, bodily. "Dumb cat; be glad I need one with spunk or you'd be road-kill."_

"I never saw Mrs. Higgins again after that. She hid me in her basement, and made her daddy pay for it all to go away."

"You escaped now, couldn't you escape then?" Spitfire voiced the question that caused her the most pain.

"I did escape, then. But it was too late. Princess had made sure they went down a couple names on the list, to spite her. Mr. Higgins had died by the time I got there. And Mrs. Higgins… She'd left Townsville all together. My brothers and sisters with her, and Silver… Silver was back on the streets. He scared himself up a gang. And he wanted me to join. I said no, and they chased me back into Princess's territory. And got themselves killed. All except Silver."

"What happened to him?" Spitfire prodded.

Her violet eyes turned to him. "You fought him."

AnimeKitty: Think of this as an Origins thing. Luna's past is expanded. And Blossom condition will be expanded on in a chapter…later. Silver is a boss cat. You can guess Luna's names all have to do with Egypt and the Moon. Isis the moon goddess, Cleo, Queen of the Nile, Luna is moon… So please review!


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Blossom sneezed for the ninth time since she'd woken up, and felt like she'd hacked up all the mucus in her system. Now she was just hacking up spit.

Her throat felt raw and itchy, like the scratchiest wool in the world had been forced down her throat and she couldn't do anything about it. Professor, and ayla were anxiously analyzing the super-flu to cure it, but Blossom feared it was going to be harder than just isolating key components and synthesizing serums.

Brick had stayed with her all he could, being surprising sweet and a ray of sunlight—she wondered if he was sick too.

She closed her eyes and thought back to the alley she'd found Luna in. It had been eerily colder there and the rest of the street. As if someone had frozen over it all. So very cold and rainy…

_Blossom landed in the fifteenth alley and shivered. "It's like a meat locker in here." _

_She heard trash cans bang and saw two strays dart out from behind a tower of cardboard boxes, streaking past her and away. Their hackles were raised and they seemed colder than she was. _

_ "Weird…" she murmured. Then she spotted Luna's fur. "Luna!"_

_ Her cat darted away. "Luna!"_

Go away, _the thought smacked against the surface of her mind. She frowned and persevered. "Luna! Please, come home. If you want me to find your real owner, I will, just please- I can't stand the thought of you being alone here. Luna, please…"_

Go away, no one can help me, not even a hero, _another thought that felt like it was chucked at her. "I can help. If you let me… Please, Luna…" _

_ Blossom darted out and picked Luna up. She hissed and struggled, even biting her on the wrist. But Blossom held on, and dropped to her knees in the sludgy rain._ _"Luna… Trust me; I'll get you back to your real owner. I promise."_

_ Luna calmed considerably, and licked the wound she'd inflicted. _You're special, Blossom, thank you…

Luna padded over to where Blossom lay on the medical bed. She didn't deserve to be there. She knew she was the cause of it all; the sickness ravaging Blossom's body like a parasite, the emotional trauma that Blossom was undergoing...

She licked Blossom's cheek. Her temporary owner stirred, but didn't awaken. She watched a furrow form on Blossom's brow. _Get better soon, Blossom…_

With that, Luna hopped down from the medical cot, and padded away, out of the lab, out of the house, and away from the yard.

"Astounding; simply astounding…" Professor Hamilton concluded.

"I must agree. This is a complete recovery." Professor Utonium nodded.

Blossom flexed her fingers again. She could feel it all again. In just a few short hours, Blossom had recovered in her sleep. Brick was leaned against the back wall, a relieved smile on his face.

She let her feet kick as they dangled off the side, feeling like an anxious kid at the doctor's office. All she really wanted was to go see Luna.

"Can I go now, Professors?" she asked, shocking them.

"Well… We'll be running some more tests. But we have the scans and samples we need so…"

Blossom was off before they said another word. Back in her room behind the closed door, she changed into a white cargo skirt, red tank top and white short-sleeved over hoodie. Once that was done, she brushed out her hair and cured it of the unsightly knots and tangles that four days of untreated bed-head left. "It's a wonder that Brick could stand to look at me…." she mumbled.

"I don't know, I kind of liked you looking so helpless and fragile." Brick chuckled from her doorway.

Blossom jolted in her seat. "You- You know the door was locked." She was certain she'd locked it. With all the boys teeming the house lately, she'd thought it necessary.

He shrugged like it was no biggie. "I picked the lock. You know my juvie record. In fact, if you didn't I'd be crushed."

Blossom frowned. "Well, what do you want?"

Brick was wondering the same thing. What did he want? Why had he come here again? Other than to see her face.

He had no reason, so he shrugged. "I wanted to see my sick angel." _That didn't sound creepy at all, _he chided himself sarcastically.

But Bloss still blushed as if he'd said something really romantic, like how _the stars failed to compare to her eyes when they sat under the night sky, _or how _her hair was the finest silk that not even angels could improve upon_.

He groaned inwardly. _He could think poetic thoughts but he couldn't say them? _

"Well… Um… Have you seen Luna around?" Bloss asked anxiously.

Brick frowned. "No I haven't. And Fire and the rest of them seem pretty content to leave the misfit alone."

"Don't call her a misfit!" she snapped. "She's just uncertain… She's afraid… She's scared that when the glow of having a cat wears off, she'll be cast aside. I _know _it."

Brick held his retort back at the hazy look in her eyes. Her pupils were wide and unfocused. He raised a brow. "Bloss, are you okay?" he asked.

She nodded then shook her head, and then got up only to take a seat on the window sill. She hugged her arms tight. "I feel like a wreck."

"You _did _just miraculously recover from the super-flu." Brick pointed out, taking a seat next to her.

She sighed and suddenly leaned against him. He wondered if this was a side-effect of the super-flu. If so, he kind-of hoped her unguarded nature was permanent. Well, at least around him. "I just… I feel so helpless. I want to help Luna. I know I have the power to help her. But… can I? I don't speak cat."

Brick snickered. "No one does. But if I could understand Spitfire, I'd turn myself into a monk for life. Or six days." He elicited a giggle from her; a half hearted one at best.

Suddenly, something scratched at the window behind them. Turning to see who it was, Bloss gasped and bolted upright, pushing him to the floor in the process. "Luna; you came back!"

Scratching the back of his head, Brick eyed the cat who was currently being coddled and cooed over by his girlfriend. Was it any wonder he was jealous of the cat, when it got kisses rained on it just for showing up with a rose in its mouth and ruining perfectly sweet a moment.

"Aw… You brought me a rose. How sweet. You're so smart and thoughtful… Let's go get a vase for it. We'll be right back, Brick-y-whicky."

She gave him a peck on the lips, and with Luna the Cupid-Cat in arms, she flew out. He sat there dumbfounded. Then, he leaned his head back against the wall in defeat. The cat was a blessing and a curse.

AnimeKitty: Blossom loves cats, don't you Blossom?

Blossom: *Holding Luna* yes, I do

A.K.: Maybe my next Blossom and Brick fanfic should include a werecat.

Brick: Hell, no!

A.K.: It's not up to you! Please review!


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

A.K.: Thank you all for reviewing! I really like reading all the comments. Oh, and to answer inquisitive minds… A werecat is like a werewolf; only you turn into a big-cat (like a panther, puma, tiger…) Please keep reviewing.

Brick looked up to see Bloss return, with Rio and Luna in tow. He snarled at Rio. Even though they were becoming siblings in less than five days, Rio was still too close to Bloss for Brick's taste.

The red-head had to have a thing for Bloss. And the present stunt he'd pulled the last time they'd had a date was still a burning thorn in Brick's-

"Oh, Rio, are you sure we have to cut the Tango? I mean Professor's really been practicing…"

"Hey, we're all still doing it. Just… Well, mom's kind of got this thing about doing the Tango in front of all our aunts: they have nothing but snarky things to say." Rio replied.

"So, we're still going to light up the dance floor… Just, minus one newlywed couple." Bloss nodded, petting Luna absently. The traitorous cat mewled and reached out to Rio, who scooped it up.

"But the slide show's going great! All I need is that photo album you promised. Then we can wrap this up in time before our extended families collide." They both shuddered.

Finally, Brick intruded on the bubble of intimacy he could see forming. "Bloss," he started. The red-head, fortunately for him, recognized supremacy when he heard it.

Rio tickled under Luna's chin and handed her back to Bloss. "I better jet; gotta drop off some invites before dance practice. Later, Sakura."

The minute Rio-the-red-headed-wonder left, Brick pulled Bloss into his lap. She squeaked. Wrapping his arms around her, he buried his face in the strawberry scented crook of her neck. He growled. "You smell nice."

_Good one Einstein… You sound like a Neanderthal. That's a _definite _turn on to someone who can speak circles around you in nine languages, three of which are alien to this planet. _Brick silently berated himself.

Bloss stuttered. "W-well, it's wild strawberry breeze, my new shampoo. Robbie got it in Paris for me for my birthday a few months ago…" Her voice trailed off in the distance as Brick suckled her neck. He wasn't sure if she'd stopped talking or he'd tuned her out in his attempt to mark her as his.

A knock on the door shattered the mood. Bloss was out of his lap before the door opened. Her long hair falling over his attack zone, she tried to compose herself before Bubbles stuck her blonde head through the door. "B-L-O-S-S-O-M! It's time for dance practice!"

She looked puzzled. "Wasn't that at seven? We still have three hours."

Bubbles giggled. "We moved it up. Oh, and you should see the new dance practice out fits I have for us. You and Rio will look so match-y in them." It was then that she noticed Brick lounging on the bed. "Oh… Did I interrupt a talk or something?"

"Or something, bluebell, or something…" Brick muttered. He was getting sick of Rio-the-red stealing his girl.

"Well, Blossom. We better go get dressed. Buttercup's already angry she has to wear a skirt for an hour and a half." Bubbles latched onto Bloss's arm and peddled her out the door.

"Hey, can I watch?" Brick heard himself ask. "Nothing beats watching BC rant over a skirt."

Bloss shot him an odd look. Bubbles paled. "Alright… What is it with boys and skirts? You're brothers are coming too. Just don't mess up the practice. Mademoiselle Avril is very strict about this."

Brick grinned. "I'll be a good boy."

He thought he heard Luna snicker kitty-cat-like behind him. Traitorous feline, he reiterated.

XXXXXX

"All I'm saying is the bastard could have found another partner," Brick reiterated, flying into his own house. It felt foreign to him, since he was spending more time in Bloss's room than anywhere else.

"But to hang the guy upside down over the Townsville beach…" Boomer admonished. "I expected that from Butch, but you?"

"Hey," Butch defended. "I'm nothing like Mr.-Taunt-and-Tease. I would have dropped him."

"Couldn't you have threatened him while systematically exposing his weaknesses like you always go?" Boomer pointed out. "And so what if he wanted to dance with Blossom for a song? She was going to turn him down right?"

Brick reddened, remembering what Mr. I-Wear-Tight-Leather-Pants-And-Hair-Gel had said. "He had it coming, Boomer. He touched her ass. No one but me touches her ass."

That elicited a snicker from Butch. "What about her _other_ boyfriends? You know the ones that predate you."

"Nice one, Butch. You learn that from BC. It's so nice to see you using two-syllable words. And two in the same statement: that's impressive bro. Looks like dating little miss power house is good for you."

Butch simmered quietly on the couch, knowing he couldn't deny a thing.

Brick took small pleasures in silencing his rowdier brother. It was a rare talent.

Boomer squashed that pleasure with his next statement. "Rio would have done something about it. I think he always does."

"What?" He vaguely heard his voice; it was dark and evil sounding, much like a villain in a dramatic cartoon.

"Well… Bubble-Bear, I mean, Bubbles said that Rio's dealt with that guy before. But he always comes back. The farthest he's gone is touching Blossom's ass- and then Rio, he broke his arm…"

Hearing that his own attempt at saving his girlfriend virtue had been one-upped, and with the physical pain that Brick had been tempted to inflict himself, deflated his anger into apathy.

"B-but—Blossom seemed really happy that you would go through all that trouble of wrapping the guy in duct tape, raw Canadian bacon and fish heads for her… I think."

Brick wasn't buying it, and away he flew to lick his wounds.

Once in his own room, with Spitfire trailing, Brick flopped back on the bed and thought of Bloss. Even in the dark void that was his room, she appeared in his mind. "Bloss…" he murmured.

He hadn't even asked her out the second time yet; he was slipping.

"You called?" her voice was a clear sound in the dark recesses of his room.

"Hey…" he choked out.

She wiggled her fingers in that weird salute giggly girls at his old prep school (he got kicked out of three months after enrolling) used to do as he walked by. A rosy blush was on her cheeks as she hovered outside his window. "Can I come in?"

"What do I get in return?" he replied. He was a certified M. He was dying to let her in and ravish her lips until he could salvage his image in her eyes. He was supposed to be the bad boy.

"A kiss…" she answered, rather low. Good thing he'd been listening so intently for her reply, or he'd have never rocketed the three yard distance from his bed to the window in 0.78 seconds flat.

He let her in and received a kiss… on the cheek. "Tease." Brick muttered following close behind her.

"I never said where." Bloss pointed out, her face reddening. She sat on his bed, a pink petal in a storm of blood red. Her face seemed to redden even more. "I came to tell you about the report I got from Professor; you said you wanted to hear about it."

He nodded and took a seat behind her, pulling her into the nest he made with his legs. "So, what does the report say, _Sakura_?"

She stiffened in his arms. He must have hit a nerve. "What? Rio, boy wonder, calls you that. Can't I?"

"It's just a pet name. When I started learning Japanese, Rio was with me. The teacher gave us all new names for a week, and made us learn to write them in romanji. _Sakura _kind of stuck, so he calls me that. It's nothing."

Brick rolled his eyes. "Right… Like he wouldn't have a secret crush on you…" He'd spoken to the guy, and wanted to knock out his teeth; he guy had nothing but glowing, adoring comments on Bloss. And Rio the magnificent had all but said he didn't like her dating Brick—and even mention that her last boyfriend had been an honor student who had previously studied in Germany or something, Dexter or Baxter…

"He's just overprotective… He had a little sister once. She… she disappeared." Brick felt more sympathy for the red-headed enforcer than he'd like, and sobered up. "Oh…"

XXXXXX

A.K.: That was a brief look into Rio's past. I guess it's time to reveal that the Hamilton boys are all adopted. Rio was picked off of a poor family and used in illegal experiments by that government—I can't tell you the name—along with Robbie and Ricky. America intervened, and the boys were set to be terminated, but Dr. Hamilton stepped in and told them otherwise. More about Rio's life will be revealed in Ion's crossover with- Oops, said too much. Also, Luna did unintentionally cause Blossom's sickness; more in the next chapter. Please keep reviewing.


	14. Chapter 14

A.K.: Fresh from camp and still writing. Comment: Worst experience I've ever had there! I would have had more fun watching paint dry, or reorganizing lint! For my sanity and yours I will not retell. I'll just type. Plus side to all this: Carl got so scared from camp; he's become a hermit in his own house!

Chapter 14

Luna prowled the alley in the daylight, eyes scanning for a sign of white fur. Suddenly, a chill rolled down her spine. She stopped and sat primly still as five cats surrounded her.

"Well, if it isn't the pretty kitty."

Luna narrowed her eyes at the cats that surrounded her. "I'm looking for the leader."

"He don't need to see no house cat," spat one of the Siamese she'd fought last time. She sported a slash across her eye. Luna's stance softened some. "What happened to your eye?"

"Does it matter?" the Siamese's twin snapped. Her ear was torn. What had happened?

"Please, I don't want any trouble; all I want is to see the leader." Luna pleaded. She could easily dispatch this bunch of tattered cats and find Silver. But to hurt them without cause? She couldn't stomach it.

"Well you found it! Your stupid collar cost us half the gang! You'll pay, house cat." The slashed Siamese leaped at her, only to be swiped down by Spitfire.

"Try it, and I cripple you." Fire hissed.

The cats raised their hackles. Snow and Razz stepped out of the shadows and hissed back. Thunder and Octave joined in too. Soon it was six against five battered cats.

"So," a bitter voice hissed. "You brought back up this time."

Luna recognized Silver's low timbre. She tensed once again. "I need to talk to you."

Silver stepped from the shadows. He limped slightly. Luna almost rushed to his side. "What, house cat? Come to eradicate the rest of us?" he sneered.

Luna gave him a bewildered look. "What do you mean?"

Silver gave a snide snort and swished his tail, which was scarred as well. "Your humans showed up nine days ago and decimated us. They took Snowball and your collar, and killed off the weakest of my gang. You come back to finish the job?"

Luna shuddered. "Silver, I'd never-"

"How do you know that name?" Silver demanded. His hackles dropped. "I haven't been 'Silver' since…" He peered at her intently. "Cleo?"

She smiled tentatively. "I'm back, Silver, and we need to talk."

Silver turned away. "No, we don't. You left and when I offered you a place, you killed off my last gang."

Luna padded over to him, and cut him off. "That's what we need to talk about, Silver. And I have a feeling your Snowball might be in deeper than she knows."

XXXXXX

Brick snuggled with Blossom on his bed. Snuggling… That was one thing he thought he'd never do. But Bloss was closer to him like this, and he could let his hands roam all in the sake of snuggling.

He pressed another kiss to her neck, in the exact spot of his hickey. He stifled a chuckle as she murmured her protest about having to go soon. He traced a 'B' into her belly, just under her breasts. She wouldn't let him go that far. She'd made that exponentially clear when he'd tried to get to third base two hours ago.

"I've got to head back home, Brick…" she sighed disentangling herself with what he deemed reluctance.

"Five more minutes." Brick grumbled pulling her back, this time onto his chest. He grunted his approval at her killer curves meshed against his own frame.

"Brick…" she pushed up off his chest and looked down on him with pale rose eyes. "I'm serious; I have to go now."

Brick cupped her hips and grinned devilishly. "You know, you don't have to…" He wiggled his brows.

Bloss frowned and got off of him. Brick gave a frustrated growl. "Then, I'm coming too. I need to take Spitfire home."

"Fire can stay over, if he wants. But you can't." Bloss rushed to say it, like he would have invited himself. _Which I would have…_

"Spitface is coming home with me. I won't wear you down. He meows in his sleep." He pulled on his red base ball cap—not his old one, but one that Bloss have gifted him last week, for his belated birthday.

"He's not a bother… He's really sweet, and he loves cuddling with me, and he won't moan about it."

"_I _cuddle with you." Brick protested. _Thank God my brothers can't hear me. _Boomer was out with Bubbles and Butch was playing extreme laser tag with BC at Mojo Jojo's former headquarters.

"You complain, and try to grope me. Fire's sweet, and he nuzzles so close." _Lucky cat, _Brick thought.

"He's not staying over. He has an appointment tomorrow for the vet; shots and vaccinations and shit." He scratched the back of his head. He was suddenly glad he'd put it off until tomorrow.

Bloss sighed, and took off through his window, leaving a pink streak in the night. Brick promptly followed, rimming her pink streak with his red streak.

XXXXX

Waving goodbye to Brick, Blossom fell onto her rose-pink bed sheet and sighed. Luna padded over to her and licked her cheek. Blossom giggled. "You're so precious…" She sniffed her sheets and wrinkled her nose. "But your scent is not very therapeutic. Off the bed, Luna, I need to change the sheets."

Luna leaped off in a graceful arch and mewed. Blossom smiled and started stripping the bed. "Really, it's like you had a cat party on my sheets…" HSe gathered the feline-pheromone scented sheets and stalked off to the basement to toss them into the washing machine in the basement.

Once down in the basement, she tried to find the fabric softener. "Where did Buttercup leave it? She's so disorganized with laundry…" She found the elusive liquid behind BC's old training equipment. The broken Olympic treadmill's broken belt held onto the bottle like it was the last hope of going for the gold.

Finally, victorious from her delicate struggle so as not to disturb the Professors, she poured the exact amount of softener necessary to make her sheets fluffy again. As she recapped it, a metal clang reached her ears. She whipped around. "Who's there?"

Some more scraping hit her ears. "Buttercup? Ricky?" she demanded. "I'm not in the mood tonight."

More scraping; this time, she pinpointed the sound's source. She zoomed over to the pile of dented weights and came face to face with narrowed heterochromic eyes. She screamed in fear.

XXXXX

Luna was lounging in her cat bed, and musing over the day when she heard the scream. Instantly, she was on her paws and silently cursing herself. She'd told Silver to hide in the old gym-turned-laundry room.

"Please don't hurt him… Please don't lash out at her…" she chanted under her salmon-scented breath as she scampered toward the laundry room.

What she found in the laundry room made her moan in agonized frustration. "Oh, no…"

XXXXX

Late in the afternoon the next day, Brick knocked on Blossom's window, Spitfire in hand. She had her back turned to him, cooing over something—Luna, no doubt—in her lap. "I'm so sorry, sweetie… I'll never hurt you again," she cooed.

Brick raised a brow. Had she stepped on Luna's tail? He knocked again. This time, she noticed and turned her head to see him. She _frowned_ at him, and murmured. "I'll be right back, my little white knight."

Brick raised a brow. He may not like the Egyptian Mau that monopolized his girlfriend's time, but he was sure it was mottled slate gray with black and dark brown. She set the feline on the carpet and stalked over to the window and threw it open.

He opened his mouth to ask her who her "little white knight" was, and if he could skin said knight. _I'm the only knight she should have._ But as soon as he entered, she laid the longest kiss she'd ever initiated on him. He was slightly dazed for a few moments before some feline foe slashed at his shin. "What the Hell?" He fell back on Blossom's bed.

Fire landed on his paws with street-smart precision. Brick met the glaring eyes of a white American shorthair cat. He seemed scraggily and about as lovable as a teddy bear made of garbage. It was the boss cat from the night they'd found Luna.

Brick felt heat rise behind his eye lids as his heat vision fired up. Just when he was going to burn a hole in the bugger, Bloss scooped him up. "No, Silverstone, he's good. He's a friend."

"I'm your boyfriend." Brick retorted, earning a double glare from Bloss and Silver-tone or whatever.

"Brick, this is Silverstone; Silver for short. He's a new friend of Luna's." She smiled at the bundle of matted white fur in her arms. The cat's dual eyes were trained on Bloss's face in adoration. _Great, not only does she have a male _human _fan base, but she has a male _feline _one, too!_ Brick groaned. "You just love cat's don't you?"

Bloss pet the cat in affection. "I do; and your just in time to help me bathe them and take them to the groomer's for their fitting."

"Groomers? Fitting? Why would I-" She planted another lip-lock on Brick that had him wishing she was always holding a cat, if it got him this. Would a black panther in her possession bring about his ultimate fantasy? He was almost desperate to find out. But instead, he said, "Hand me the damn cat shampoo. If you plant another kiss like that on me after I finish, I may just let you take me to the ballet or something."

Bloss smirked. "I'm not partial to the ballet; but I love a great Broadway play."

XXXXXXXX

A.K.: So Blossom seduces Brick into helping, Silver has just won over Blossom's heart and I found my inner peace. *floating in midair*

Butch: Why do you never expand on BC's relationship with me?

A.K.: *Falling on butt* Arg! I will humiliate you in the finale, Butch Leslie Nelson Jojo-Thatcher!

Butch: *Red-faced* You promised not to tell! *Runs off to find memory eraser—see next chapter*

A.K.: So, now that I have hurt Butch's ego, let's get on to the reviewing-thing. Please review.

BC: *Consoling Butch* Only a tough guy could rock the name Leslie and still be as hot as you.

Butch: That's why I love you, babe, even if your name is Buttercup Cand—

*BC delivers a T.K.O. by upper-cutting Butch's jaw with her Green Nova Burst. And the crowd goes wild!*


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Back-rubs, Backstabbing, & Boyfriend Snatching

Luna purred as Blossom's fingers massaged her back. Mewling like a five day old kitten, she rolled over onto her back exposing her belly.

Blossom giggled and treated her to a belly massage too. "You're my little spoiled kitty, aren't you?"

Luna mewed in agreement.

Suddenly, chaos erupted from her bathroom and an angry Silver tore through the room with Brick and Fire on his tail.

"Just hold still!" Fire hissed.

"Never!" Silver retorted.

And so, the two wrestled. Blossom was so surprised, she stopped massaging Luna's belly. Luna growled low in her throat and leaped down from the desk. Stalking over to the tussling kitties she precisely swiped at both cats with her claws. Both male cats fell on their kitty-cat butts.

"You two..." she began.

"It's alright, Luna, Silver's just not used to being bathed by rough hands- right?" Blossom picked up the white cat and made a beeline for the bathroom.

Brick stopped her though. Honestly, what Blossom saw in Brick, Luna couldn't fathom.

"What am I supposed to do?"

Blossom gave him a sound peck on the lips. "Try and win over Luna. She doesn't seem to trust you much."

With that, Blossom was gone.

Brick muttered some curses and Luna felt the same. "Well..." he looked pointedly from Luna to Fire. "She said win you over..."

Luna shivered as Brick's hands reached for her. While the redheaded hotshot was the perfect owner for Fire, she wasn't so sure they would mesh right.

As he roughly plopped her on the desk again, Luna recounted her life. It was a good one...

And then his hands moved to her back.

XXXXX

Princess listened to the jabberings of the Persian longhair as it gobbled down smoked Alaskan salmon, spicy tuna, and rare Golden Prince sea bass.

"...and he's the leader. That guy on that poster, too-" the cat- who dubbed herself Empress- motioned to the poster of Brick on her walls. "He was there. The other redhead, I don't know."

Princess held up a hand. "Another redhead? Describe her!"

Empress, the mangy little dog-crap-sniffer, paused. "I don't know... My memory's foggy... Maybe you can call up some more-"

"Security!" Princess screeched. She was fed up with the cat's moxie. In came her personal guards with laser guns trained on Empress.

The cat bristled. "Yeesh, you try and get a decent meal around here and this is what happens... She has pink eyes, and was floating in midair. Seemed real chummy with that redheaded boy too."

Princess ground the enamel off he back teeth. Blossom had stolen her cat and her boyfriend too?! Suddenly, she had a brilliant idea.

"You deserve a reward for all this... A really special fish called Bass X was being kept for my pet cat. But you've certainly earned it... Chef, bring me the Bass X. It's dinner time for all nice little kitties..."

XXXXX

Bubbles rubbed noses with Boomer in a Eskimo kiss as they floated down the street. "I never knew having an archenemy turned boyfriend could be so much fun!" she giggled.

"Same here." Boomer chuckled. As the blue couple turned a corner, a shiver coursed down Bubbles' spine. "Maybe we should go the other way..."

Just then, a low growl hit her super sonic ears. "Booker did you-"

Moments later, a cat the size of a dumpster- with roughly the same perfume as one- appeared. "Oh shit!" Boomer said. He stepped before Bubbles.

The cat's amber eyes were trained on Boomer. Suddenly it lunged. Bubbles and Boomer flew high, but the cat's tail- a grotesquely long slime-coated furry thing- caught her Ug-booted foot and reeled her back to the ground. She hit her head on the pavement and bounced once. Boomer grabbed her with steadying arms and laser-eyed the tail into letting her go. "You okay, Bubble-Bear?" he demanded.

"Just a bump..." she conceded. "Let's call in back up. That thing is evil."

Boomer nodded and whipped out his phone. He hit speed dial 3. "Brick... We've got a problem. There's some crazy cat around here and we need help. No... It's a mutant... I can't cut through it with my laser beams... Just hurry-"

"And bring Blossom with you!" Bubbles added.

Beeping off, Boomer parried a thrust strike of the mutant feline's claws. Bubbles tried a sonic overture but it only dazed the creature. It charged at Boomer, muzzle full of incisors and canines bared in fury.

Bubbles tried a Bubbling-Blitz. She threw her whole body into a water covered assault. The cat howled in pain and reared back.

"Nice shot- Urgh!"

"Boomer! Let him go!" Bubbles attacked it furiously as it dragged her unconscious boyfriend away. "No!" she screeched as it went down the sewer drain, Boomer with it. She tried to follow, but it hacked up a hairball she couldn't get past. "Boo..." she whispered, falling to her knees. "Boomer!"

XXXXX

Blossom held her whimpering sister close. "We'll find him."

Bubbles sobbed loudly. "I-I couldn't s-save him! It was a-all my fault! I w-wanted to go t-to the downtown f-f-fashion show!" she wailed.

Brick was pacing while Rio was tacking Boomer's cell phone signal on his laptop.

BC, Ion and Butch had yet to return from their aerial search. They had already roped off the alleyways and sewer drains with the Mayor's permission. The citizens were warned that they had a mutant cat on the loose. Whatever this cat was it was, it was dangerous.

XXXXX

AnimeKitty: Oh, Boomer... I had to make you the first to go. Your just too nice to endure the pandemonium that's coming next. Well, this is an epic battle in the making. Who do you want to see snatched next. Review w/your pick of the remaining nine: Ion, Blossom, Brick, BC, Butch, Rio, Robbie, Ricky and Bubbles. It's anyone's guess...


	16. Chapter 16

EOP 16

AK: It's been so long... I finally got a restraining order against Carl! *Clapping* Here we go.

XXXXX

Blossom hovered over Rio's shoulder, guiding him through the sewer tunnels on the map. "But this one connects to the 43rd Street."

Rio traced the tunnel. "But the cat couldn't have fit into that small tunnel; from Bubbles' description, I'd say we check another route."

"Okay, we can cross off sewer tunnel five, Brick. Which others connect to Gilligan Road BC?"

The green Puff lifted her head from the phone. "Tunnel twelve and seven."

Blossom sighed. "Let's check seven."

That was a dead end too, considering it ran near a pound. "Where is this monster?" BC hissed, slamming the phone down.

Blossom felt her sister's frustrations. Bubbles had been locked in her room all week, barely eating and barely alive. Occasionally, Blossom would hear crying and sobbing, but nothing else. She'd even kicked out Snow, because the cat's eyes were a similar shade of blue to Boomer's.

"All the tunnels are a bust. This one ends in front of Tony's Boxing Gym, but it's too narrow..." Robbie sighed. "I really hope we find Boomer quick. Bubbles is falling apart."

Blossom surveyed the group of eight others before her. They were all overworked and going double time to find the blue Ruff. Nothing she or Rio suggested was working...

She sighed. "BC, let's head out."

"What?" Rio and Brick gaped.

"BC and I are going to act as bait." She surveyed the room. "Bubbles is my sister; I'm willing to risk it. Besides, it's two of us we're now aware of the danger."

"Then I'm going too." Ricky stood. "I'm stronger than BC, so just point me in the right direction and I'll start pounding."

"Then me too." Ion chirped. "I won't let my family be terrorized like this."

Blossom sighed. "Fine!" She pointed to Brick, Rio, Butch, and Robbie. "You guys are home base team. We'll stay linked and stay together."

She singled out Ion, BC, Ricky and herself. "We're patrol team. Keep all channels open. And remember your cell phones."

XXXX

BC vaporized the claw reaching for her. "Bubbles did not mention it had six paws!"

"She also didn't mention the tentacles." Ricky growled.

"I don't think descriptions are necessary right now!" Blossom hissed, fighting off the two non-cat appendages coming for her.

"I think this thing mutates as it swallows organic material. And one of the tunnels lead to a sushi bar..." Ion theorized.

The cat creature let out a woofer sonic blast that sent the quartet back into the wall. "And it absorbed Boomer's sound control. Perfect..." Blossom muttered.

One tentacle wrapped around BC and Blossom. "Crap," they said simultaneously.

"BC!" Ricky cried.

"Blossom!" Ion wailed.

The tentacles reared back as green and red electricity shocked the two Puffs loose. Sucking in air, Blossom let it out in a blizzard of ice. The two tentacles froze in their tracks.

"My turn." BC drove her sparking green fist through the tentacles and watched them shatter.

"Can you freeze the heart? I believe that's where Boomer is. And it needs all organic samples alive to copy and utilize their abilities."

So Boomer was still alive. Blossom whipped out her cell phone and pressed speed dial two. "Hello, Misery here." Bubbles answered.

"Your boyfriend is alive and we're fighting the thing that took him."

Slight pause. "Where are you? Never mind, I'll find you."

Blossom hung up and concentrated on the writhing mass of cat and whatever organic life it had eaten.

Finally it got over the loss of two of it tentacles and made a grab for Ricky. He backpedaled away and sent electric jabs at the monster.

Another paw went for Ion, who ducked and expanded to Warrior mode. In his taller, more agile and stronger form, he dodged grabs and swipes cutting through the other six tentacles with his bionic sword.

"Who'd you call?" BC asked, deflecting paws and claws.

"YOU MONSTER!" raged Bubbles' voice.

"Who do you think?" Blossom deadpanned, dragging BC out of range of the Bubbles' wrath.

The blue Puff was wearing a pair of rumpled white pajama pants, a tear stained powder blue tank top and a white and blue poke-dotted robe, but she might as well have been wearing battle armor. She roundhouse kicked the monster and went BC crazy, eye beams at full blast.

"NO ONE TAKES MY BOO-BOO AWAY FROM ME! NO ONE!" she screamed, still zapping the creature.

"Whoa... That is some rage." Ion said, falling back.

"To think she was sulking in her room all week..." Ricky awed, hovering beside BC.

Blossom flew in close, honing her ice powers. In one gigantic blow, she iced the creature, halting Bubbles' attack. But only for a moment.

"YOU MONSTER!" She charged.

Blossom heard a tiny cracking sound. "Bubbles, wait!"

"Let me go! I'm gonna kill that thing!"

"That thing has Boomer in it, alive!"

Her sister calmed a little. "Alive?"

Suddenly, the creature broke free of the icy prison and roared, sounding like a lion crossed with a screeching hawk. Blossom pulled Bubbles back with her, flying at top speed to escape the tentacled clutches of the monster.

Ahead, BC and Ricky were doing their best to keep the tentacles at bay, while Ion was charging his Meca-Beam. A tentacle wrapped around Blossom's ankle. Helping, she let her sister go.

As she struggled, she saw a flash of red.

"Bloss!"

"Sakura!"

Rio slashed the tentacle and Brick caught her.

"Bloss-"

"Sakura-"

"-are you alright?" they said in unison. Blossom nodded, and stood.

"Blossom, ready!" Ion said.

Blossom took off again, zooming towards the cannon in Ion's chest.

The red beam shot out and Blossom changed direction, absorbing the kinetic energy and catapulting herself at the monster. She aimed her red, energized fist at the head. "TAKE THIS!"

Her fist drove through its eye and brain, and she came out the other side, exhausted. Falling to her knees, she groaned. Her energy was depleted, her vision spotty, but she'd dealt a major blow, she hoped. She felt a tentacle circle her waist. Her hopes were dashed.

"Sakura!"

"Blossom!"

Blossom blacked out.

XXXXXX

Brick sat beside Blossom's catatonic body, hands fisted and rage barely contained. She hadn't stirred in two days. The wedding had been called off, seeing as how most of the bridal party was missing.

Ion and Rio had saved her. They'd worked together to break the main tentacle's grip and get her out, toss her to Brick and hold it off enough to save the rest of them. But at the cost of Ricky, Rio, and Ion... And what of their team?

Blossom hadn't stirred. Bubbles had gone into an emotional spiral. BC was mute. The blue Hamilton boy was barely keeping it together.

Brick grit his teeth. "Damn it. Why the hell is all this f***ing nonsense happening around me?!"

He flipped on the TV to the local news. "Hello, Girls."

Princess' snooty voice filled the air. "Having fun with my pretty little kitty?"

Brick wanted to strangle the rich b****. She'd deserve it.

"Well, it can all stop if you turn yourselves in to me and my scientists for a melt down process. Just think, all this destruction stopped by your deaths. Doesn't that sound good?"

BC stared at the screen. Bubbles whimpered. "What other choice do we have? I have nothing else to live for!"

Brick drove his fist through the table. "F*** it all!"

They were supposed to be superheroes. To save the day. Instead they were cornered. With only six of them left- maybe five since Butch was out alone on patrol- what could they do. The monster had bested them. They would lose. And Blossom and her sisters would haver is to make it right.

XXXXX

AK: Kind of epic, no? Again, sorry for the long hiatus. I was busy with other stories. R&R!


	17. Chapter 17

EoP 17

AK: ...People are crazy...

XXXX

Brick watched as the townspeople swarmed the girls' house. They held picket signs, torches and pitchforks. Really? Pitchforks? He understood the torches because Princess psycho cat cut the power, but pitchforks?

"TURN YOURSELVES IN!"

"GET OUT OF TOWN!"

"STOP THIS NOW!"

"SAVE US!"

Their cries of panic were irritating and grating on his last nerves. Every last towns person was irate with fear and blaming the Girls.

BC and Bubbles were staring out the windows, BC close to tears and Bubbles streaming like a fountain. Blossom had yet to wake up. Robbie had gone on patrol with Butch.

"They hate us." BC's voice quivered.

"More than when we first used our powers!" Bubbles wailed.

Brick tightened his grip on the remote until he broke it.

"Maybe we should just-"

"No." Brick said.

BC glared at him. "This isn't your choice. We're causing this. We'll-"

"You're not causing anything! You're living here. You're heroes here." Brick waved a hand at the mob outside the windows, rioting and chanting. "Those people are just blindly following the instinct to oust people. But I'm going to set them straight..."

He wrenched open the door and stepped out and went to the leader of the crowd, a shorty pudgy man with a huge bald spot that could have doubled for a reflector on a bike.

"Who're you?! We want those troublemakers!" the short man raged.

Brick wrenched the man up by the front of his shirt. "I'm the original troublemaker."

"That's Brick Jojo..."

"The Jojo boys..."

"Brick Jojo..."

Brick smiled coldly as recognition dawned. "I see memory serves around here. Yeah, I'm that Brick Jojo. The same one who stole from you guys, destroyed half the town, and made you all too terrified to go outside for weeks. I've also spent most of my childhood staring at metal bars. And if your memory is good enough to know me, y'all know who put me there." He lowered the pudgy man to the feet.

A murmur fell over the crowd. "Yeah, so you do remember the good that the Girls brought you. How about the bad?" Silence. "Wanna know why? Cuz there was never any malice in what the did. They never had to save you guys, but they did. They chose to be heroes then and they still are now."

"Then let them choose to turn themselves into Princess!" the pudgy man yelled.

"YEAH!"

"Listen to yourselves! Have all of you forgotten that Princess never honors a promise? And where will you be without the Girls then?" He spotted little Annie, holding a sign. "Who babysits your kids better than anyone else? Bubbles does and she never charges a cent." He jerked a thumb at the basketball players with the pitchforks. "And who coaches the community team? Buttercup took you guys to nationals." And then he glared at all the store managers and clerks. "Just last week you guys were begging Blossom to help you file taxes and balance the store budget. And she did, without a complaint."

The crowd looked uneasy. "But our livelihood..."

Brick growled. "I lost my brother to that thing. Did any of you lose anyone to it? And the Girls also lost their stepbrothers to it. Can you say the same? Can you stand here and say that you lost something you can't ever get back?!"

There was nothing but silence. And then a murmur broke out. He looked to see Blossom stumbling out, helped by Bubbles and BC.

"Blossom..."

She smiled at him- a half smile at best. Then she looked at the crowd. "People of Townsville," she announced. "Ten years ago, we swore to protect this city to the best of our powers, no matter the cost. And so far, we've kept it that way." Her eyes darkened. "If you still think our death will save you all, we only ask that after we die, you remember us as not heroes- but fellow citizens."

A hush fell over the crowd. Then, little Annie threw down her sign and came running to Bubbles. "I don't wanna see you leave!" she wailed.

The basketball team let their pitchforks fall. "Man, we weren't even thinking. Without BC, where would we be? Jus' fightin', man. We don't wanna see y'all go either," Corey Phelps exclaimed.

The shop keeper from Ruby's Amoire stepped out. "Blossom, we'd never want to see you all die. You're as much a part of this city as we are."

As more citizens swarmed to apologize, Brick watched as the pudgy man fell back and slipped away. Interesting...

"Hey bro, look who I found..." Butch called from above.

Brick looked up and smiled warmly. Butch and Robbie shouldered a bruised and bloodied Boomer. "There's hope..." he murmured, just as Bubbles cried, "Boo-Boo!"

She was flying into Boomer's arms- or arm, technically- before he even touched earth.

He felt a tug on his arm and looked behind him to see Blossom. "Bloss..."

"You're amazing, you know that?" she laughed. "When all hope was lost, you have them something to believe in."

Brick gently grabbed her by the waist. "I just showed them you.

XXXX

Albert Fink dialed the number in his phone. "The crowd was pacified."

"By what?" Princess's short, impatient tone crossed miles to make Albert shiver.

"T-that red guy- Brick Jojo... He reminded them what the girls did everyday for them. And then the leader, Blossom- she talked to them."

Princess shriek nearly made him deaf in the ear. "I'm still getting paid right?"

"No, your fired." The phone shut off.

"Crap, now I'm unemployed..."

"That's the least of your problems, pudgy." Brick Jojo's chuckled from overhead.

"S***..."

XXXX

AK: Brick's got mad people skills. Boomer is miraculously back. And Albert is going to fry. Good chapter, right. R&R, please.


	18. Chapter 18

EoP 18

AK: Thinking of writing a sequel to one of my Powerpuff fanfics. Which one should it be?

XXXX

Blossom was snuggled into Brick's chest, alternating between planning and making out. Honestly, how could you not kiss the boy who had braved an angry mob for you?

Luckily the Professor and Dr. Hamilton were away visiting the families, and had been warned not to return until otherwise noted. Dr. Hamilton made us promise to be safe and kick Princess' ass. Hard.

"So we meet at the Plant, at twelve noon. Princess will be none the wiser." Brick smirked against her neck.

"You're smart when you put your mind to it." Bloss teased.

"Hey, don't go spreading rumors... It'll ruin my rep." Brick squeezed her around the middle.

"So everyone understands the plan?" Bloss asked.

Bubbles nodded and Eskimo-kissed Boomer. BC nodded as she absently ran her hands through Butch's hair as the green Ruff rested his head on her lap. Robbie nodded as well.

Bloss smiled. Soon, life would return to normality. And when it did, she had something to tell Brick... Something extremely important.

XXXX

Brick picked himself up off the ground, vision still spotty. He watched as his girlfriend and her sister were ripped in half by that monster.

And he was powerless to stop it.

"No... No... NO!"

Brick sat up in bed next to Blossom in cold sweat and actual terror. He swiped his hair back from his forehead and looked around. They were still at the Utonium house, still safe, and still together.

Then why did it all feel so real? he wondered. It had felt too real. Too edgy... Too close to what could happen... Was he that shaken by the last time? He sat there and agonized over this for a while, until Bloss shifted next to him.

"Mmm... Brick...? What are you doing up...?" Bloss asked sleepily.

"Nothing... Just a little thinking..." Brick brushed off.

She frowned as she shook off the dreamy state she was in. "No... I know that look... It's the same one you got the day Butch had to go into surgery to get his tonsils taken out... You're scared."

Brick sighed. "No hiding from you..." He helped her sit up, and ignored the was she looked in her pink camisole and red shorts. "It's the monster... I can't shake the feeling something bad is going to happen... Even our cats bailed town! I feel like I'm gonna lose you again..."

"Again?" Bloss giggled. "Brick, you never lost me... And you never will..." She cupped his cheek and arched up to kiss him, melding their mouths and putting his fears to bed. Speaking of bed...

He deftly adjusted their positions so that he was looming over her. "Woman, you make my blood boil... Another one of those and I'm going to deflower you before we even go on our third date."

"What happened to our second date?"

He rested his forehead on hers. "Just go with it please? I'm dying over here surround by the smell of you..."

"Okay..."

And so they snuggled back into bed, hugging each other tightly. Brick absently rubbed her back as he thought about his dream. "Unlikely..." he chuckled. He'd make sure they survived...

XXXX

Boomer laid back in Bubbles' bed, thinking of the battle yet to be waged tomorrow.

Bubbles was curled up into his side, absently doodling on his bare chest.

"I just can't shake the feeling that everything will change tomorrow..." Bubbles murmured.

Boomer twirled a lock of her blonde hair around his finger. "I feel it too... But I know that as long as you smile at me when the battle's gone, I'll be fine."

Bubbles scooted up to place a kiss on his cheek. "You are such a sweet talker."

"Sweet talkers only get kisses on the cheek now?" Boomer feigned hurt.

"Yep; and heroes get this,"

She planted a deep one on him, and grabbed her waist to hold her there longer.

"Sign me up for the next war, then..."

Bubbles thumped him on the chest. "Pervert... One scare is enough..." She rested her head on her chest and he let her resume what she was doing before.

"When we finish this, I have something I want to give you. It's really important..."

"I know I'll accept it... As long as it isn't a dead cricket." She referred to the "present" he'd given her before leaving.

"No crickets..." Boomer sighed. "You know, I'm crazy about you, Bubbly-Boo."

"I'm crazy about you too, Boo-Boo." Bubbles smiled up at him.

XXXX

Butch drove his fist into the punching bag and kept going, his mind heavy. Next to him, BC was practicing roundhouse kicks on a similar punching bag decorated with Princess's face.

"I wonder what the others are doing..." Butch said.

"Probably getting all mushy and gross... Stringing pretty words through each others' to lull them to sleep... That crap."

"Yeah..." Sounded about right. "What wimps. Right?" Butch laughed.

The pounding from the Princess punching bag stopped. He looked over to see BC staring at the ground. Sh**, what had he said now?! "Uh, BC?"

"Butch, you are the most annoying guy ever." Punch. "Really, you have no brain!" Punch. "You're like an effing scarecrow!" Punch. "You're a clod!" Punch. "Insensitive!" Punch. "Unreasonable!" One- two punch. "And I should hate you for that." Finally she stopped wailing on the bag. "But come home alive tomorrow, okay?"

The voice she used to say it... It was small, childlike, almost afraid... And she had yet to look at him. Butch blinked. She was scared! That was a new one...

"BC, all the seasonal passes to every sport televised couldn't keep me away." He went over to her and grabbed her hand. "Look at me."

She looked at their joined hands but not at his face. He squeezed her hand once. "Look!" he urged. She did, reluctantly. "You are the most precious person to me... You're the only girl who can actually tolerate my sh**, and give it back tenfold. And Princess can't handle us, no way no how." He gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Now let's get back to punching."

She squeezed his hand tighter. "Wait..." When he turned back, she cupped his cheek with her free hand and kissed him. She pulled back a few moments later. "Now we can get back to punching..."

XXXX

AK: This chapter is devoid of true action "action", but it's got plenty of emotion. Plenty... Even the greens got gushy... So yeah, I wanna hear suggestions about which stories to make a sequel for so... R&R please!


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